Sad Songs for Dirty Lovers
by kellocfan1
Summary: Every action has a consequence. The aftermath of the sex tape.
1. Chapter 1

Summary: Every action has a consequence. The aftermath of the sex tape.

Disclaimer: I don't own One Tree Hill.. I promise.

Author's Note: Takes place after 4.14. I may use some stuff from the show, but it is mostly my version of events. This will eventually be a Brooke/Nathan pairing, but all couples are included. Enjoy! And please.. don't forget to review! It only takes a second to let me know you're reading.. Reviews are my fuel and, most of the time, my only motivation to continue.

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Brooke raced into the house with Nathan in tow. Both were dripping wet with smiles on their faces.

"Oh my God, is that Nathan?!"

"What's all the commotion?" Brooke wondered aloud.

"I don't know," Nathan replied. "but I am going to kill Skillz."

The duo pushed their way through the crowd along with Peyton, whose screams could be heard throughout the house. "Turn it off! Turn it off!"

It was obviously a sex tape, and Brooke was horrified when she saw her face and heard her voice.

"Hold on, I can't believe I'm doing this. I would die if anybody ever saw this, Nathan."

"Don't worry." he replied. "No one will ever know."

To the dissapointment of the crowd, Nathan abruptly turned off the television and ordered everyone to leave at once. Brooke didn't hesitate to follow this command. That is, until she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned around and was greeted with Peyton's fist. She stumbled backward. She felt a trickle of warm blood and stopped it with the sleeve of her jacket. Nathan moved to help her, but Haley's cold glance stopped him in his tracks. Her eyes cast downward as the tears threatened to spill. Everyone was now gone with the exception of her, Nathan, Haley, Lucas, and Peyton.

"You bitch!" Peyton screamed. "You hypocrite! You put on this innocent act for so long .. you watch me beg for your forgiveness .. when all this time _you _were the cheating whore?!"

Brooke glanced up at her former friend and couldn't help but notice her attire.. her disheveled hair.. Were Peyton and Lucas just having sex? Despite the current events, it all hurt just the same. What hurt worse was her friends, if they were still willing to accept that role, seeing her in this vulnerable state. She couldn't just stand by.. with her tears and her bloody nose.. as Peyton bitched her out. She couldn't do it.

"Oh come on, Peyton." she began, her voice filled with attitude and annoyance. "You can step down from your high horse. Everyone knows that you and Nathan were a train wreck."

The blow that followed left her face down on the carpet. From that point on, she had a hard time comprehending what others were saying. Goldilocks may not look that tough, but she sure as hell knew how the throw a punch. It was Nathan who helped her to her feet and left the room in search of an ice pack. She watched for a moment as Lucas tried to console Peyton. The sight sickened her, and for a brief moment, she regretted ever laying eyes on Lucas Scott. Her glance then shifted to her new and improved best friend.

"Haley.." she started, but was immediantly silenced by her friend's death glare.

"I can't even look at you right now."

That hurt worse than all of Peyton's blows combined. Despite her dizziness, she abruptly left the house just as Nathan walked in with an ice pack.

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Rachel was looking through old photos when Brooke walked in wet, bloody and with early signs of a black eye. "What the hell happened to you?"

"Ask Nathan." Brooke replied, her voice breaking. "He has the entire thing on tape."

"So.. Nathan stood there with a video camera as some thug beat the shit out of you?"

Brooke sighed. She could see that her friend was utterly confused. She spent the next few minutes recapping the night's events.

Rachel smiled at the scandal. "You never told me you slept with Nathan, you whore! Now.. there has been a lot of speculation, but it looks like you can finally clear some things up. Who's really the big brother?" she smiled and nudged her friend suggestively.

Brooke groaned. "Excuse me for thinking you were capable of having a mature conversation. Will you please get me an ice pack?"

"Fine." Rachel replied and headed for the doorway. "But don't think you're dismissed from this conversation." She turned to leave the room and found herself face-to-face with.. Chase. "Clean Teens.." she scoffed before finally leaving the room.

"Hey." Brooke stood to greet her boyfriend. "I was hoping you'd stop by. Look, about tonight.."

"I just came to see if you were okay."

For the first time since the sex tape scandal, Brooke smiled. It was a faint smile, but a smile nonetheless. She looked up at Chase- his face sketched with worry.. his hands shyly tucked away in the pockets of his jeans- and realized for the first time that she just may be in love with him. "Yeah.." she said softly. "I think I am. I mean, with the exception of severe humiliation."

"I'm glad you're okay." he said. "That makes this a lot easier.."

"What?" Brooke asked, confused. And then.. realization dawned on her.

"I don't think we should see each other anymore."

She bit her bottem lip and nodded. Could she honestly blame him? She willed herself not to cry.. not to let it get to her. This proved to be an impossible task. He cautiously approached her.. to comfort her. She turned away.

"Um.." he went on, clearly not knowing how to console her. "About prom.. we can still go if you want to. I know it means a lot to you."

"No." she said assertively, despite her tears. "I'd rather go alone than with someone who doesn't want to be with me."

"I'm sorry." he said before silently leaving the room.

Brooke clasped her hand over her mouth as the tears cascaded down her face. She felt a hand on her shoulder and, assuming it was Chase, immediantly stiffened. She slowly turned to see that it was Rachel.

"Chase broke up with me."

"Brooke, I'm sorry." Rachel said sincerely, putting an arm around her.

And then she handed her the ice pack.

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"I can't believe Brooke is such a backstabbing whore!" Peyton paced the length of her bedroom lividly. "Actually, no. What I can't believe is that I spent so much time and energy trying to patch up our friendship. What a waste!"

Lucas was stretched across Peyton's bed.. wordlessly listening to her rant. "You know," he spoke up for the first time. "You and Nathan _were _broken up."

Peyton turned toward him furiously- her hands planted on her hips. "Do you want me and _you _to be broken up?"

"Point taken." Lucas said and went back to staring at the ceiling.

"Clean Teens." Peyton said mockingly. "I wonder how long _that _will last."

"Well," he began, cautiously this time. "Maybe you shouldn't focus so much on the person Brooke _was_.. but more on the person she's _trying _to be."

Peyton stopped pacing and turned her attention to her boyfriend. "What are you, her attorney? Maybe you shouldn't focus so much on _Brooke_.. but more on your _girlfriend_. Get the hell out of my room."

"Peyton-" he started, but was immediantly cut off.

"I mean it, Luke. Get out."

He sighed and held his hands up in the air, signaling surrender, and left.

Peyton finally sat down and found herself wishing that, for once, Lucas would consider her feelings the way he considered Brooke's.

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"Haley.." Nathan looked into his wife's eyes. He saw no visible trace of emotion. "You've got to understand.. I forgot that tape even existed. That happened a long time ago.. I'm not proud of it.. of the person I used to be." he paused before quickly adding an "I love you" to the apology. That always helped.

"Nathan." Haley stated, taking hold of his hands and blinking away any tears that threatened to spill. After all, she _was_ pregnant and emotional. "As much as I wish I did, I really don't have a right to be angry."

"You don't?" he replied, confused.

"No, silly." she said with a smile. "What happened between you and Brooke happened _before _I worked my magic on you."

Nathan smiled. "Wow. And I thought I was going to spend my night apologizing to the bedroom door.."

Haley laughed. "Well, I guess you _could_ do that if you wanted to.. but what I had planned kind of requires you to be _inside _the bedroom."

"That's tempting, Hales.." he started. "But I have a round of apologies to make. You were first on that list."

"It's nothing that can't wait until tomorrow, right?"

Nathan easily caved. "Right." He took her hand and led her to the bedroom.

Needless to say, he was _not _looking forward to tomorrow.

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Please review! ..and I'll post another chapter soon:)


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own One Tree Hill.

Author's Note: Thank you guys _so much_ for the wonderful feedback!! I know you all have different opinions regarding pairings.. and obviously it's impossible to please everyone. I already said this would eventually turn into a Brathan. I'm not going back on that now. About the Leyton issue... I personally HATE them together. I'm the one throwing garbage at the tv when their scenes come on. haha. BUT I want to make this as realistic as I can.. That being said, Leyton isn't just going to break up out of the blue. Same goes for Naley. They're not my favorite couple, either. All ships will get their scenes. I just hope I can do them justice. Oh, and there's some Brathan in this chapter, so I hope you all enjoy! ..and PLEASE keep up with the AMAZING reviews!! They make my day:)

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Brooke woke up the following morning hoping that the entire sex tape scandal had been a nightmare. She was actually partly convinced of this ... but then she looked in the mirror.

"Oh God.." she whispered. Her eye was nearly swollen shut. She reached up to touch it and was surprised by the immediate stinging sensation.

Nope.. definately not a dream.

She noticed a note from Rachel on the vanity and, despite being the only one in the room, read it aloud. "Hey whore. Went to see Turner. Be back soon, Rach."

She was just about to get dressed when she heard the faint sound of someone knocking at the door. She sighed, for she had anticipated visitors. Could it be Peyton? Back for round two of their one-sided fist fight ... Or perhaps Haley had come to bitch her out for sleeping with her husband? Whoever it was, Brooke wasn't looking forward to it. She glanced down at her attire of underwear and a cami and decided that she couldn't risk anymore "whore" comments. She snatched one of Rachel's silk bathrobes off the floor and hurried from the room.

She opened the door to reveal a sheepish looking Nathan. He grimaced when he saw her. She frowned.

"Sorry." he said.

"Apology accepted." she murmered before beginning to close the door in his face. He stopped her.

"Can I come in?" he asked. After a moment of hesitation, she stepped aside, clearing his path to enter the enormous house.

"The bedroom's upstairs." Brooke informed him. "I'm afraid I don't have any _video cameras _lying around, but what the hell? My phone takes video."

"Brooke.." he started.

"Don't Brooke me," she replied. "You've already done that. Remember?" 

"Not really, no." he said, scratching his head. "We were both _wasted_."

"Aww.." Brooke said in mock dissapointment. "Too bad there isn't a sex tape lying around to help jog your memory ... Wait no, there _is_."

She plopped down on the sofa and sighed, all in self-pity. She rested her head on her hands and winced when she grazed her eye... and then pouted some more.

"No, there's not." he sat down next to her. "I destroyed it this morning."

"Great," Brooke replied, flashing him a smile. He couldn't tell if she was sincere or not. Her face quickly twisted back into its sullen form, and that answered that question. "That'll help people un-see it. That'll make Chase un-break up with me and Peyton un-punch me in the face!" she pointed for effect and, again, flinched when she accidently made contact. "Damn it!"

"Brooke.." he began, obviously at a loss for words. "I'm sorry."

She shook her head. "Why couldn't you have just destroyed it sooner?" Then, realization seemed to have dawned on her as she turned to him wearing a horrified expression. "Oh my God.. Do you like, _use _it?"

"No!" he immediately replied, and relief washed over her.

There was a moment of silence before Brooke claimed the floor yet again. "Look.." she began softly. "I'm sorry. I know you didn't, like, _rape_ me or anything.." he smiled at this. "It just kind of sucks that I'm the whore in this equation while you get a pat on the back for scoring with the legendary Brooke Davis."

"You sure think highly of yourself." he teased. She mock glared at him, and he continued. "No.. Don't worry about it. The people who say those things are just bored with their own lives."

"What about Haley and Peyton?" Brooke asked slowly, looking up at him. "They seem pretty satisfied with their lives.. and they still hate me."

"They'll come around." he gave her a reassuring smile, which she returned. "Besides.." he continued. "It didn't mean anything. Right?"

Her breath caught in her throat. Why did _that_ have an affect on her? She slowly nodded in response. He got up to leave, but she stopped him. "Look, Nate.." she began. "I'm sorry I was so hard on you.. I guess I just figured I'd be taking so much crap today, I might as well dish some out while I had the chance."

"Don't worry about it." he replied, and there was a short moment of silence. "Well, I would love to stay and chat, but I have more stops to make. Nathan Scott apology tour 2007.." she laughed and got up to walk him to the door. He was almost outside when he stopped abruptly and turned around to face her. "I'll see you tonight."

"You will?" she replied, confusion written all over her face.

He raised an eyebrow. "Um.. yeah.. Senior Prom? Does that ring a bell?"

Her eyes widened. With all the recent drama, she had completely forgotten about the fast-approaching prom.

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Haley was in the kitchen eating breakfast when Lucas' head poked into the room. "Luke!" she exclaimed. "I'd get up and give you a hug, but I'm getting bigger by the day.." he smiled at this and took a seat on the stool next to her. "And these eggs Deb cooked for me?" she went on. "I am not letting them out of my sight!"

"Where's Nathan?" Lucas asked, glancing around the room distractedly.

"Haven't you heard?" Haley said between bites. "Nathan Scott apology tour 2007. You better buy a ticket, because they're going _fast_."

Lucas laughed. "I thought that tour was sold out."

They both laughed before the conversation took a serious turn.

"Considering.. _everything_.." Lucas began, choosing his words carefully. "How are you doing?"

Haley dropped her fork and replaced it with Lucas' hand. "It's so sweet that you're always so worried about me." she said, smiling. "but I'm fine. Nathan didn't cheat on _me_. He cheated on Peyton. Don't you think she might need you a little more than I do right now?"

"It's good to know I'm wanted." he replied, pretending to be hurt.

"I didn't mean it like _that_." Haley released his hand and smacked it playfully, then picked up her fork again.

"She kicked me out." Lucas admitted after a brief pause.

"Why?" Haley asked, concerned.

Lucas sighed. "I think I may have inadvertently taken Brooke's side.."

"You are such a sucker for Brooke." Haley laughed, shaking her head. "I guess some things never change."

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Rachel returned to find Brooke sprawled across her bed clinging to her prom dress, which was lying on her lap.

"You know, it'sbarely noon." Rachel pointed out. "I don't think you need to be getting ready _quite_ yet."

Brooke sat up and looked up at her friend with a frown.

"Fine. Do what you want. I was just saying." Rachel dropped her purse and collapsed onto her own bed.

"I'm not going." Brooke pouted.

"Why the hell not?" Rachel wanted to know. "Word around town is, the whore's a shoo-in for queen."

"That's funny.." Brooke replied. "I didn't think _delinquents _qualified."

"Um, yeah, about that.." Rachel began. Brooke failed to hide her concern as she waited for her friend to continue. "I was expelled. I'm leaving, Brooke."

As if the sex tape wasn't enough, Brooke could now add getting her only remaining friend expelled to her guilty conscience.

Could this day _get_ any worse?


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own One Tree Hill.

Author's Note: Hey all.. I'm sorry for the wait. The reason I started writing this fic was to get everyone (myself included) through the hiatus. So far, I haven't been doing the best job of that.. Anyway, reviews! Thanks so much for the positive feedback! Although the number of reviews DID go down this chapter.. I'm not going to get too worked up about it as long as you don't let it happen again! haha. Oh, and I know you all love the Brachel friendship.. I do, too.. but could you guys find it in your hearts to forgive me if she left? I promise she'll be back! Besides, there's always phone, email, and text messaging.. they'll keep in touch! No worries! Oh, and one other thing. Mouth and Shelly are still together in this fic. Whether or not they had sex is up to you. If you need to have that beautiful image implanted in your brains, then so be it. haha. I hope you all enjoy this next chapter and, as always, don't forget to drop me a review! Thanks much:)

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Brooke stood in the door frame and watched as her friend gathered her belongings, stuffing them into an oversized bag. She had never seen the red-head so emotional.

"You didn't have to do this, you know." Brooke knelt down on the floor next to Rachel and began to fold some of her clothing. "It's not too late. I'll go right now. I'll turn myself in." she offered. Rachel shook her head fiercely.

"You're my friend, Brooke." she said in a small voice.

"And you're mine, Rachel, I just-"

"So, it's about time I started acting like it, right?" Rachel said, cutting her off. "I mean, trying to steal your squad, not to mention your boyfriend, didn't really make me friend of the year."

"You and Peyton both." Brooke had bitterness and resentment written all over her face. This happened whenever Peyton's name came up.

"Yeah, about that.." Rachel set down the shirt she was attempting to fold and turned to Brooke. "Promise me you'll try to make things right with her."

Brooke's eyes widened and, she too, set down the clothes she was currently folding. "The_ hell _I will!" was her immediate response. "Have you forgotten that she went after Lucas not once, but twice.. _while_ I was dating him?" she paused for effect. "Oh, and aside from that, there is the tiny detail of that bitch giving me a black eye the night before prom.. my _senior_ prom."

Rachel rolled her eyes, seemingly unfazed by the facts Brooke presented her with. "You done?" Brooke opened her mouth to reply, but was abruptly cut off. "Good. Are you looking for sympathy? Because you wont get any here. So, she and Lucas snuck around behind your back.. Let it go. You've held that over their heads for long enough." she paused. "And besides, you slept with Nathan."

"But-"

"You have a black eye on the night of prom.." Rachel went on. "Cry about it a little more. And besides, I thought you weren't going?"

"Oh, that is _so _beside the point!" Brooke shot back heatedly.

"Listen," Rachel said, her voice softening. "Graduation is coming up. You'll regret it if you don't spend this time with your friends.. take it from someone who can't."

"Peyton is _not _my friend." Brooke replied stubbornly, but Rachel could tell that she was wearing her down.

"What was your guys' motto? The one I thought was total bullshit until now..?" she looked to Brooke for help.

"Hos over bros." Brooke said quietly, her eyes cast downward.

"Hos over bros." Rachel repeated. "Like it or not, Peyton used to mean something to you." she paused. "I think she still does."

Brooke didn't say anything, but the look on her face confirmed this.

"Go see her, Brooke." Rachel encouraged, nodding toward the doorway. "I can finish packing on my own."

Brooke nodded and wordlessly got up to leave. She was inches from the door when she stopped and turned around. "Will I see you before you leave?"

"Of course." Rachel replied. She watched as her friend left the room and felt that the good deeds she had done in the past few hours had been more than she had done in her entire lifetime.

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"Come back for the encore?" Nathan was walking out the door just as Brooke was getting out of her car.

She gave him a questioning look before comprehending. "Oh right, your apology thing. How's that goin' for ya?"

"It was hard." he nodded toward Peyton's house, which was almost directly behind him. "She was beyond pissed."

"I could've told you that.." Brooke replied, meeting him at the center of the sidewalk. "My face is proof."

Nathan smiled at her sadly. "Don't worry," he said, hoping to reassure her. "I'm pretty sure I calmed her down."

"How?" she replied, her voice weak.

"I made it clear that what happened between us didn't mean anything." Brooke's face fell at this, but Nathan failed to notice as he seemed to be distracted. "It was just a one-night stand."

"Keep repeating that." Brooke said, the hurt distinguishable in her voice. "Maybe it will make it all go away." she pushed past him. He called after her, but she ignored him and walked into Peyton's house, closing the door, perhaps a little too loudly, behind her.

"Nathan?" Peyton hurried into the room, but stopped dead in her tracks when she saw who was standing before her.

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"Rachel?" Mouth's voice echoed through the enormous house. "You home?"

"Mouth!" he looked up to see her standing at the top of the stairs. She hurried down to greet him. "What's up?" she asked, casually.

"Were you ever going to tell me you were leaving?" he asked, the hurt evident in his voice.

She sighed and tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "Not if I could help it." she said, sadly. "Besides, you don't need me anymore. I heard you have yet another new girlfriend." she smiled and nudged him suggestively, hoping to ease the tension. "For someone named Mouth, you're sure living up to all expectations!"

He smiled, sadly. Obviously, this didn't make him feel much better. She looked up at him wearing a guilty expression. "What can I say to make you feel better, Mouth?"

"Say you'll go to prom tonight before you leave.." he replied. "Say you'll save a dance for me."

She sighed. "Mouth, I'm expelled. It's against the rules."

"That never stopped you before." he replied. "I'll see you there, Rachel."

With that, he left.

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Peyton frowned and turned to face the wall as opposed to her former best friend. "If you've come looking for guys that are unavailable, Nathan just left and Lucas went to see Haley."

"You're one to talk." Brooke clasped her hand over her mouth. She had come to reconcile with Peyton.. not argue with her.

"Brooke, what the hell are you doing here?" Peyton demanded. She turned around to look the brunette straight in the eye. "If you've come looking for another bruise, you're one more smart ass remark away from getting one."

"I didn't come to fight.." Brooke said in a defeated way. "I just came to tell you that.." she paused, almost unable to say it. She urged herself to continue. "I'm sorry." she said so quietly it was barely audible.

"Me too." Peyton replied. Brooke looked up with a glimmer of hope in her eyes.. but Peyton wasn't done. "Sorry you weren't here when I needed you the most."

"Peyton.." Brooke started, but was immediantly cut off.

"No." Peyton said. "I get to do this." she ran a hand through her curls before regarding her former best friend. "This isn't about Nathan or Lucas.. or any other guy, Brooke. This is about us.. and how easy it is for someone to come between us." she sighed. "This friendship thing is not going to work until you can learn to grow up and be honest with me." A few tears escaped as Peyton went on. "Why can't you trust me?" she whispered.

Although she was so tempted to scoff at this question for obvious reasons, Brooke Davis had a change of heart. This was why she decided to open up and tell her something real.. something she had been carrying with her for two years.

"There's something you don't know about my one-night stand with Nathan.." she began. Her eyes were already watering up. She abruptly wiped the tears away using the back of her hand. She had to do this. "I got pregnant, Peyton." Peyton's eyes widened as Brooke continued. "I had an abortion without telling anyone." her voice cracked. "By the time I found out about.. it.. you and Nate were already back together. So, it was either lose the baby or lose you." Tears were now streaming freely down Brooke's delicate face. Peyton didn't know how to react. "I ended up losing both anyway.. I wish I would've known that back then."

With that, Brooke turned around and left. Peyton was too speechless to stop her.

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Review!! Please:)


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't own One Tree Hill. If I did, obviously the pairings would be a little bit different..

Author's Note: You guys are awesome! I absolutely LOVED the feedback from this last chapter! So, I shocked a few of you with the ending? That's exactly the reaction I had been hoping for! Okay.. and now I have a question for you. I said this was going to be a Brathan, and it will be, but I'm curious as to what other pairing you would like to see.. I'm pretty much open to anything with the exception of slash. Oh, and as I said before, I'm not a fan of Leyton. They'll have some scenes together, of course, but I don't know if I could make them a main pairing.. And I don't know if you'd want me to, I'd most likely end up screwing it up for all you Leytoners, anyway. Other than that, I'm open to almost anything. I can do Laley.. Jeyton.. um, I don't know.. Routh? Just let me know what you'd like to see! To be honest, this chapter is kind of a filler chapter.. Not too much goes on, but there is some Brucas and Naley for any interested.. I'll try to make future chapters longer, but I wanted to at least give you guys something to reward you for your amazing reviews! Keep it up! Sorry for the uber long author's note.. Back to the story..

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Brooke laid motionless on her bed, clinging to her pillow. She willed herself not to cry. She was alone. Rachel was gone, most likely off saying goodbye to the few friends she actually had. Still, she could come back at any time, and Brooke didn't want anyone to see her cry.

Of course, Peyton had seen her cry just a few short hours ago..

_Peyton._

Brooke scolded herself for telling her secret.. And to Peyton, of all people. Peyton, the person who had betrayed her in the worst way possible, knew her longest lasting secret. Peyton, who could quite possibly be on the hunt for revenge, knew the one thing that would absolutely destroy her if anyone ever found out.

Suddenly, Brooke found herself wishing that _she _were the one leaving- not Rachel.

Footsteps and a knock on the door shook her from her thoughts. She sat up to see who it was and inwardly confirmed that this was, in fact, the worst day of her life. Well, aside from the day of her abortion. She could be the last remaining person on Earth and still not feel as empty and alone as she did that day.

She noticed he was about to speak and abruptly cut him off. "I know why you're here." she said, her voice lacking the usual perkiness associated with it. "You came in hopes of protecting your precious Peyton from the big, bad Brooke." she looked up at him, annoyed. "Well, could you please save it? I've had a pretty shitty day, and I don't need a morality check.. _especially _one from you, Lucas Scott."

"Okay," he replied, putting his arms up in surrender. "No need to get all defensive on me. Besides, that's not why I'm here.." he shifted uncomfortibly before reluctantly walking further into the room. He eased himself next to her on the bed.

"Don't get any ideas." she said playfully, and he was happy to see that a glimmer of her former personality had been restored. "So, why are you here?" she suppressed a laugh. "And also.. nice penguin suit." Although she said this light-heartedly, she couldn't help but feel a twinge of sadness knowing that all of the effort that had went into his appearance had been done for Peyton.. not her.

Lucas laughed. "I came to check on you." he said seriously, before adding: "and I would comment on your formal attire, but, unless I'm imagining things, you're in your pajamas an hour before prom."

"You're not imagining things." she assured him. "I'm not going."

"Why not?"

Brooke looked at him incredulously. "Have you been living under a rock for the past twenty-four hours? The entire student body thinks I'm a whore!"

He smiled at her sadly, but offered no advice.

"Well," she said after a moment. "Can you blame me?"

"I'm not going to lie to you, Brooke." he finally said. "Half of those people thought you were a whore long before the revelation of the sex tape.."

Brooke's eyes widened. "You better hope to God you have a point."

He smiled at her, patiently. "I do. The thing is, you never cared what other people thought. You never let the opinions of others stop you from being yourself." he paused. "That's what I love about you."

"Thanks, Luke." she whispered. "And I'm sorry.. for not telling you about Nathan." she offered.

He gave her a reassuring pat on the leg before standing up to leave. "Don't worry about it."

"Hey, Luke?"

He turned around, halfway through the door, and gave her a questioning look.

"You haven't talked to Peyton in the past few hours.. have you?" she reluctantly asked, praying that he didn't know. Thankfully, he shook his head. "Why?"

"No reason." she replied, relieved.

"I'll see you at prom, Brooke." he said confidently before finally leaving the room.

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Nathan adjusted his tie in the full-length mirror and sighed. He had tried to be the hero today. He had visited everyone who could've possibly, even in the slightest way, been hurt by the sex tape. He had apologized numerous times, yet he still felt like a horrible person. He was tired of feeling like a jackass. Maybe he should apologize to Brooke for stressing the meaninglessness of that night? Or maybe he was overlooking the entire situation..?

"Ahem."

He spotted his wife in the mirror and turned around to get a better look at her. "Wow." he managed to say. "Haley, you look amazing."

Haley shyly walked toward him wearing her pale, pink dress and heels. Soft curls surrounded her radiant face. Six months pregnant and still absolutely glowing. "You don't look so shabby yourself."

He shook all thoughts of Brooke from his mind as he escorted Haley, his _wife _out the door.

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Peyton made a few final adjustments to her appearance. She was expecting Lucas to arrive at any minute now. She was still replaying the days events continuously through her head. She had been number one on Brooke's bitch list for a while now.. So why did Brooke confide in her, of all people? She had considered paying her a visit.. but she had nothing to say. For once, she was utterly speechless. She wasn't ready to make nice quite yet and forget about the sex tape.. especially considering how Brooke had ended their life-long friendship when all this time she was nothing short of a hypocrite. Then again, she couldn't exactly be angry with her. She had begged Brooke to confide in her. This wish was granted. And all this time Brooke had been fighting off these demons on her own. Peyton had failed to notice anything wrong. She couldn't help but feel that she had failed Brooke as a friend as well.

The doorbell rang and interrupted her train of thought. "Coming!"

She hurried down the staircase and opened the front door eagerly. She smiled when she saw that head of blonde hair that she was all too familiar with.

"Lucas." she smiled.

He turned around, and his smile matched hers. "You look.. amazing."

"Let's do this thing."

-------

Brooke had done everything to prep for her senior prom. She had stalled in every way possible.. and still Rachel had yet to return. She worried that she may not get the chance to say goodbye. She was contemplating leaving when she heard the door open. Rachel walked in. Her fiery red hair was swept into an updo, and her short, green dress matched her heels. "For someone who didn't plan on going to prom, you look almost as hot as I do." Rachel said upon entering the house.

Brooke grinned. "So maybe people will be staring.. but I figured I'm used to it by now, so why the hell not?" she grabbed her red handbag off the table before regarding her friend again. "Thank God you're not going." she joked. "I mean, that outfit might work for traveling, but in all honesty.. green's not your color."

"So, what do you say?" Rachel said with a laugh. "Want to be my date? I mean, I hear you're pretty easy."

"One condition." Brooke replied. "We stop at the liquor store beforehand. If I'm going to get through this night, I'm going to have to be drunk while doing so."

Rachel shrugged. "Sure. I have my fake ID in the car. Let's go."

With that, the two girls left the house, neither having any idea what their senior prom had in store for them.

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	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I don't own One Tree Hill or the song "Great Companion".

Author's Note: Hey all.. thanks for the amazing reviews! 16! I've never gotten that many reviews on a single chapter before! Hopefully, you guys can beat that record! haha. And I'm sorry for leaving ya hanging for so long right before the prom.. Things have been pretty hectic lately.. Oh, and that last chapter was to set the stage for this. I've built up this chapter so much, I just don't want to dissapoint anyone. So, I hope it's worth the wait! Oh, and also, those of you who haven't should tell me your pairing preferences. I'm still trying to decide what would be best. Nothing is set in stone yet. Well, except for Brooke and Nathan, of course. :)  
Anyway, hope you all enjoy this next chapter and don't forget to drop me a review! I'll try not to make you guys wait so long this time:)

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Brooke took one last swig before stashing her flask in her fiery red clutch purse. She glanced toward Rachel, whos actions mirrored her own. They stopped a few feet short of the door.

"Are you ready for this?" Rachel asked, a mischievous smile playing on her lips.

"As I'll ever be." Brooke replied before looping her arm through the red head's slightly darker one.

They slowly entered the building and the door seemed to echo as it shut behind them. Brooke frowned as all eyes were on her and her accomplice. Those who didn't immediantly take notice were nudged by their fellow peers and pointed in the direction of the disruption. If it weren't for the blaring of the speakers, the room would be completely silent with the exception of a few hushed whispers.

"Not quite the reaction I'd been hoping for, but the night is still young." Rachel said, her words reaching only Brooke's earshot. "I'm off to spike the punch. I'll catch up with you later." Rachel hurried off as the room slowly returned to its previous pace.

Brooke stood awkwardly for a moment before heading off in some random direction, hoping to find a familiar face. She stopped dead in her tracks when she spotted a table full of them. Nathan, Haley, Lucas, and Peyton were scattered around a circular table. They were laughing, and Brooke couldn't help but wonder if she were the topic of their conversation.. the joke of the night. She turned to walk away.

"Brooke!" If it were any voice other than Nathan's, she wouldn't have turned around expectantly, as if she were waiting to be invited to their table. As she seated herself conveniently between Nathan and Lucas, she caught Peyton's eye. She knew what was on the blonde's mind, and it was obvious that her revelation had had an affect on her.. on the both of them. She looked away and could feel Peyton's eyes lingering on her for a moment longer before doing the same.

"I'm glad you came, Brooke." It was Lucas' voice that broke the unbearable silence, and the entire table seemed to sigh simultaneously in relief, as if they had been holding their breaths in fear of making an unwanted noise.

"That makes one of us." Brooke said slowly, glancing around the table in uncertainty.

"No, don't be ridiculous, Brooke." Haley said, reaching across the table for her friend's hand. "I'm glad you came, too.. and I'm sorry.. about the whole sex tape ordeal." Haley's eyes cast downward as she recounted the painful memory. "I overreacted. What happened between you and Nathan was a long time ago.."

Brooke noticed Nathan shift uncomfortibly in his seat as Haley went on.

"Just don't let it happen again." Haley said in mock sternness before revealing a smile.

"Thanks, Haley." Brooke replied, softly.

Haley squeezed the brunette's hand in reassurance, and Brooke smiled with relief. "Maybe prom wont be so bad after all.."

_"Get your hands off of me!"_

Brooke sighed, for she recognized that voice all too well.

"Or maybe I spoke too soon.."

-------

"You shouldn't have came in the first place.. you're expelled, Ms. Gattina!"

Brooke weaved her way through the quickly forming crowd just as Mr. Turner and two police officers were attempting to escort Rachel from the building. "What the hell is going on?" she wanted to know.

"Language, Ms. Davis." Mr. Turner dutifully reminded her, despite the fact that his hands were currently full.

"In any other situation this would be a turn-on, but for the love of God, _let me go_!" Rachel finally managed to wriggle from their grasp. "One minute." she said pleadingly, and they surprisingly complied.

"It's okay." Brooke said. "I'll get my purse, and we can go." She turned to leave, but Rachel stopped her.

"You should stay." She said and, suddenly noticing that all eyes were on her, pulled Brooke into a more secluded area of the room. "Due to some.. unforseen circumstances.." she paused to glare at Turner. "It looks like I'm going to be taking that red-eye after all.. Sorry." and Brooke could tell she was sincere.

"I'm going to miss you." Brooke said softly. "Even though you are a dirty slut."

"And you're a cheating whore." Rachel added, playfully. She turned toward the policemen, who were impatiently waiting for her. "I better go. My men await." she gathered her purse and her wrap. "Do you think they'll cuff me?" she asked, excitedly. "Because that's, like, my ultimate sex fantasy."

Brooke laughed before her face took a more serious form. "Take care, Rachel."

Rachel nodded and began to walk away. "Oh, right." she said, turning back to her friend. "The house is yours for another week, but my parents will be home after that. I guess you could stay for longer, but my dad's kind of a pervert, so.."

"I'll be gone soon, no worries." Brooke replied as she watched Rachel's dramatic exit. "I just wish I knew where the hell I was going." she mumbled to herself before turning away.

-------

Brooke was headed toward the punchbowl, hoping that Rachel had succeeded in spiking it, when she felt a hand on her shoulder. "Peyton?" her bony fingers were easily distinguishable.

"Is it true?" the blonde asked, wasting no time with formalities. "Or is it some shit you spewed to, again, make me feel like a horrible person?"

"You can't honestly think that.." Brooke replied, her expression laced with hurt and disbelief.

"I don't know what to think anymore, Brooke!" Peyton cried. "I sure as hell didn't think you were capable of hurting me the way you did last night."

"If that's not karma coming back to bite you in the ass, then I don't know what is." Brooke replied, her tough exterior refusing to falter.

"I never slept with him." Peyton said softly, her defenses growing weaker and weaker.

"Yeah, well you're a prude." she turned and was met with the steadfast gaze of her former friend. It was then that she realized that her approach to this delicate topic was all wrong. "Look, Peyton.." she sighed. "You can call me a hypocrite all you want, but the difference is that you were never in love with Nathan."

"That still didn't give you the right to sleep with him." Peyton replied stubbornly as she folded her arms across her chest.

Brooke laughed incredulously, finding it impossible to show any sign of remorse whatsoever. "Is this the part where I get down on my hands and knees and beg for your forgiveness?" she scoffed. "Believe me, Peyton.. If I thought, for one second, that this friendship was worth saving.. I would." Brooke looked away, fearful of the harm her words may have caused. However, Peyton's response took her by surprise.

"Why didn't you tell me about the baby?"

Brooke's eyes widened in horror, and she glanced around to ensure that no one had overheard. Frantically, she pulled Peyton into a secluded area of the room before addressing the question. "I _did_."

"No.." Peyton replied as her eyes filled with tears. "Why didn't you tell me two years ago?"

"The same reason why you didn't tell me you were in love with _my _boyfriend!" Brooke shot back, heatedly.

"I could have helped you!" Peyton insisted, ignoring Brooke's previous comment.

"Don't you get it, Peyton?" Brooke replied as her vision became cloudy, as well. "It doesn't matter anymore!" she wiped frantically at her tears, because Brooke Davis did _not _cry.. _especially _not in public. "Talking about it wont bring my baby back, and it sure as hell wont bring our friendship back!" she looked up at the blonde, who was struggling to maintain her composure as well. "It's too hard." Brooke whispered. "We're done."

Brooke hurried off in the direction of the nearest bathroom. The thought of Peyton running to Lucas for comfort made her sick.. she needed to get to the bathroom before this became a reality. She quickened her pace.

"Brooke?"

She felt a light tug on her arm, and she whirled around to be greeted with a pair of deep, blue eyes.

"Nathan." she stated before dabbing at her eyes ones more.

"Are you okay?" he asked, a look of pity on his face. This question was answered with silence and a sullen expression. "Sorry.. bad question." he paused. "Are people giving you shit about the sex tape?" Again, Brooke didn't reply. "I'm sorry." he offered, unsure of what else to say or what else would be appropriate, for that matter.

"Why?" Brooke bitterly replied. "I mean, it didn't mean anything.. Right?" she pushed past him, but he stopped her.

"Brooke.." he started, but was immediately cut off.

"Why don't you tell me a few more times, Nathan?" she said as a fresh coat of tears filled her eyes. "It's not like you remind me every time you see me or anything." she angrily wiped away her tears. What was _with _her tonight? She was an expert at concealing her emotions.. Why should this be any different? "I get it Nathan, sex means nothing to you." she went on. "Oh right, that is unless it's with Haley.. or Peyton.. You know, one of those girls you have an _emotional_ connection with.. the type you settle down and get _married_ to."

"Brooke.." he tried again, but could not get a word in.

"But with me it's just sex.. no strings attached." she paused at the irony of this statement and came close to revealing her secret, but somehow managed to expertly avoid it. "And then you'll go back to girls like Haley and Peyton.." she glanced across the room to see Lucas consoling Peyton. She sobbed into his shoulder as he stroked her back and gingerly kissed the top of her head. "They always do."

She pushed past him and this time succeeded at getting away.

-------

Brooke stared at her reflection in the bathroom mirror while dabbing her eyes with a tissue. She somehow managed not to ruin her make-up completely, although a few brief touch-ups were in order. In all of five minutes, she had survived two dramatic confrontations. She took a few deep breaths, hoping to calm her breathing.

Suddenly, the door opened, and a very pregnant Haley appeared. "Hey Tigger." she said with a small smile.

"Tutor Girl." Brooke replied, her voice lacked its usual perkiness, and it took a surprising amount of effort to force a smile.

"I was sent in here to find you.. what's up?" Haley inquired. The small girl hoisted herself up onto the countertop and rested her hands on her now very visible bumb.

Brooke rummaged through her purse, searching for her favorite lip gloss. "I can't imagine anyone would care." she mumbled.

Haley frowned. "I care, Brooke." she stated. "And so do a lot of other people. Oh, what did you say to Nathan? Because he seemed kind of upset when he asked me to come find you.."

Brooke stopped what she was doing and turned slowly toward her friend. "You mean it wasn't Pucas and goldilocks that sent you?"

Haley gave the brunette a strange look before shaking her head. "No.. why? Did you say something to upset them as well?"

Brooke scoffed. "Nah." she replied. "I just officially ended my ten-year friendship with Peyton, that's all."

"Oh God.. Brooke." Haley ran a hand through her auburn-colored hair and sighed. "Really? On the night of senior prom? After all the recent drama, she really could've used a night of fun.."

"Because I've been having the time of my life.." Brooke replied, sardonically, upset that one of her only remaining friends was seemingly taking Peyton's side.

Haley leapt down from her sitting position and took a few steps closer to Brooke. She regarded the feisted brunette very calmly, despite the hormones. "Look, all I'm saying is that after all the recent events-"

"Including the sex tape?" Brooke cut in. Her hands were planted firmly on her hips and she wore and icy expression on her blotchy, red face.

"_Especially _the sex tape."

"I was hurt by that, too, you know!"

Haley took a step back. She had obviously, in some way, offended Brooke. "I never said you weren't!" she replied. "You're acting as if _you're_ the one with raging hormones. I just hope to God you never get pregnant!"

Stung by the invisible blow, Brooke took a step back. She could feel her eyes welling up with tears once again. She quickly blinked them away and left the rest room while Haley was left standing there wondering what it was that she said.

-------

Brooke emerged from the bathroom to run, almost literally, into Lucas.

"Hey.." he said in a soft voice, placing a tentative hand on her shoulder. "I've been looking for you."

"Yeah, that's great, Luke," she replied, somewhat annoyed. "but I was actually just about to leave, so.."

"Peyton told me all about the conversation the two of you had earlier." he said, ignoring her hint.

Her eyes widened in fear and horror. _Lucas knew?_

"And I'm sorry.. about Peyton.. about everything."

Brooke sighed with relief. As annoying as the 'I never meant to hurt you' love triangle from hell speech was, she was glad that he, and everyone else, for that matter, didn't know about the abortion. And even though this night was a complete disaster, she knew that if she left the building with that knowledge, she would be okay.

"It's fine, Luke. I don't care anymore." this was, of course, a lie, but if she wanted to leave anytime soon, she would have to assure him that she was okay. "For all I care, you can run off and marry Peyton and have emo children and live in an easel-shaped mansion." she sighed. "Seriously, go for it."

For obvious reasons, Lucas chose to ignore this suggestion. "I just want us to be friends, Brooke."

"Are you sure?" Brooke shook her head and laughed in self pity. "Because I'm sure I'll have done something to fuck that up by the end of the night.."

"What are you talking about?"

"Let's see.. what can I do to lose your friendship?" she replied, feigning contemplation. "I could.. call you a traitor for going out with Peyton?" she suggested. "Or maybe I'll just flat out tell you that our friendship's not worth fighting for?" she smiled. It wasn't a happy smile, however, it was a lonely, bitter, depressed, pitiful, I-hate-my-life kind of smile. "Take your pick. Time's ticking, lover-boy."

Before he could reply, or even register her request, principal Turner's voice came into play. Brooke and Lucas turned simultaneously toward the stage to see him at the microphone.

"It is now time to announce the 2007 prom king and queen, as voted by you, the students of Tree Hill."

Everyone quieted and gathered round the stage in anticipation.

"Students, please help me welcome your king, Nathan Scott, and your queen, Brooke Davis!"

They immediantly locked eyes from across the room.

And, for a split second, Brooke was happy.

_And our history will never be erased  
You were a great companion  
And some memories will never ever fade  
So I love and so I hate_

She turned to Lucas, and he nodded toward the stage in approval. "Get up there." she offered him a small smile before complying.

She met Nathan in the center of the stage, and they exchanged a look before they were crowned. She accepted her flowers happily as Mr. Turner, again, took the mic.

"I now present to you.. your 2007 prom king and-"

_"Whore!"_

_"Slut!"_

_"Skank!"_

What hurt the most was that she had chased all of her friends away. There was no one left to defend her. She shoved the flowers into Nathan's arms before hurrying off the stage and toward the exit.

"Queen." Principal Turner finished with a sigh.

Nathan felt the sudden urge to go after her until his eyes locked with Haley's. He knew that she would willingly take Brooke's place for the King and Queen's dance.. the dance that he had strangely been looking forward to. He sighed and gave Haley a slight wave as he was quickly surrounded with confetti and balloons. In a room full of people, Nathan Scott had never felt so alone.

-------

Brooke made it outside only to realize that Rachel had driven them. The long walk to a house that she could no longer call her home was the icing on the cake.. a perfectly fitting ending to the worst night of her life.

But hey, things were looking up.. After all, she still had that flask in her purse..

She opened it and took a long swig.

And then she started walking.

-------

_Review, pleeeeaase!! ;)_


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I don't own One Tree Hill or any of the characters involved.

Author's Note: You guys are amazing! 30 reviews for one chapter? I've never gotten that many before. You have no idea how psyched I am about that! I'm sorry for making you wait for such a long time for this update, but please understand that, under any other circumstances, this would've been up sooner. I recently graduated.. and then it was my birthday.. I've just been soooo busy lately! And also, I really wanted to reward you guys for the awesome feedback.. so I put more work into this chapter than any of the other ones.. might I add that it is the longest yet? So please enjoy!! and please please review!! I love you all.. you're amazing! Oh, and one more thing.. I know some people are anxious to see Leyton break up.. They will. No worries... soon! Ok.. I'm done talking now. Enjoy:)

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Brooke awoke the next morning with a pounding headache. She groaned and rolled over, only to realize that she wasn't on her bed.. or _a _bed, for that matter. She sat up to discover that she had passed out on her kitchen floor. Well, technically, not _her _kitchen floor.. Rachel's parents kitchen floor.. which also reminded her that, within the next week, she'd have to pack up and leave. She sighed and silently began the search for aspirin.

Brooke was still at a loss as to why she had passed out last night.. Sure, she had drowned that flask in a matter of minutes, but she was Brooke Davis. Surely, she could hold her liquor better than _that._ Suddenly, memories from the previous night came flooding back to her. She had, in fact, had quite a bit to drink.. but that was far from the most significant event.

_Beep...Beep...Beep..._

Brooke scanned the room frantically for the source of the unwanted noise, as her head was pounding like no other. Finally, her eyes landed on her cell phone, which was lying on the floor. She knelt down to pick it up.

"Five new messages?" Brooke said aloud. "That's odd considering that's five more friends than I actually have." she entered her security code and soon heard her voice.

"Hi, you've reached Brooke Davis. Leave me a message and, if you're lucky, I'll call you back. Bye bitches!"

She sighed and awaited her first message.

"Hey Brooke.. It's me, Peyton." she rolled her eyes at this and resisted the temptation to delete it. "I know last night sucked, but if it makes you feel any better, I had a shitty time, too."

"Newsflash." Brooke mumbled. "Not everything is about you, blondie."

"I just wanted to let you know that, despite what you said, I'm not giving up on you.. not this time. Bye, Brooke."

Brooke deleted the unwanted message and patiently waited for the next.

"Brooke.. Hi." this voice belonged to the famous Haley James-Scott. "I'm sorry about last night. If I said anything to upset you, I'm sure it was just the hormones kicking in. If you need someone to talk to, I work from ten to two. I'll treat you to lunch. Bye Tigger."

As if a free lunch would fix anything. Besides, Brooke had long since lost her appetite.

"Hey cheery." Brooke shook her head. Since when did exes refer to each other by pet names? "I feel terrible about last night. None of that would've happened if I hadn't convinced you to go in the first place. Just let me know if there's anything I can do to make it up to you, okay?"

"I can think of a few ways.." Brooke smirked, then quickly dismissed the thought. Although Peyton wasn't her favorite person, she was over Lucas and would never bring another love triangle upon herself.

"Hey Brooke, it's me again.." Having learned from past mistakes, Brooke deleted the message at the mere recognition of Peyton's voice.

"Hey whore, it's Rachel." Brooke smiled, hoping the redhead was calling to offer her the house for a few more weeks...or forever. "It looks like my parents will be home sooner than I thought...like tomorrow. Sorry."

Brooke's eyes widened. She had to be packed up and gone in twenty-four hours??

"But feel free to throw yourself a ragin' goodbye party and trash the place...they're pissing me off. Bye, Brookie."

"You have no new messages."

Brooke sighed. She had half expected one to be from the younger Scott brother. No such luck. Instead, she heard from Peyton, not once.. but twice, and learned that she would apparently be bunking in her car for the next few weeks. But all was well, because she was offered a _free lunch!_

"I hate my life." she murmured, finding it impossible for it to suck any more.

Apparently, she had spoken to soon, for at that exact moment, the doorbell rang. She glanced down at her current attire, or lack thereof. Believe it or not, Brooke had taken off her own dress last night and had failed to properly clothe herself since.

Her eyes scanned the room and eventually landed on a silk bathrobe. She quickly retrieved it and wrapped it around her body before hurrying to the door.

She swung the door open, perhaps a bit too anxiously, and immediately regretted it.

"Wow." Peyton said. "You look like hell."

Brooke could only imagine. She instinctively touched the back of her head, and her hand got lost in the matted mass of knots and tangles. Her make-up was sure to be smeared, and the powder that concealed her black and blue eye had most likely disappeared.

"What do you want, Peyton?" Brooke replied, too tired to think of a witty insult.

"Can I come in?" Peyton asked, her eyes wandering beyond Brooke and into the highly decorated estate.

Brooke's tiny frame guarded the doorway and protected the mansion from what Brooke thought to be the devil in a leather jacket. Yes, it was true, Peyton wore her bad-ass leather jacket despite the fact that it was seventy-five degrees outside. Her mass of curls and tight, blue jeans completed the ensemble.

Brooke considered her request for a moment. Peyton's annoyingly big, blue eyes pleaded with her. Finally, Brooke stepped to the side, allowing the blonde entrance into the house.

"Everyone's worried about you, ya know.." Peyton said once she was settled on the sofa and Brooke on a chair.

"Why?" Brooke replied, the bitterness in her voice evident. "I mean, I won prom queen, right?" Brooke looked up at Peyton, and she was finally able to match the intensity of eyes the size of golf balls. "I can die happy knowing that my childhood dream was finally realized."

"Right." Peyton said, slowly. "But you would also die harboring this huge secret. Brooke, you have to tell him."

Brooke was clearly unprepared for this. She opened her mouth to speak, but abruptly shut it. Finally, she managed to spit out an incoherent sentence and, after that, a barely audible "like hell".

"You wont be able to move on until everything's out in the open." Peyton reasoned.

"What would be the point?" Brooke finally said. "There'd be a very pissed off married couple and quite possibly another black eye, but that's it." she stood up and brought a hand to her forehead in anxiety. "I need aspirin."

Peyton followed her into the kitchen. "As long as you're carrying around this guilt, Brooke, you wont ever be able to move on. You have to tell him!" she urged.

"No, unwanted psychologist slash wannabe bad-ass in a leather jacket, I do _not _have to tell him.. nor will I."

"He deserves to know the truth."

"Not if it's going to hurt him. I'm _not _telling him, Peyton." Brooke said. She popped two pills in her mouth and swallowed them. "And neither are you."

Judging by her expression, Peyton was torn.

"Oh, and please don't tell Lucas either." Brooke went on, failing to notice the blonde's hesitance.

Peyton feigned contemplation before nodding, as if she were doing Brooke a favor. Truth be told, she wouldn't even consider telling Lucas. It would prove to give him yet another excuse to concentrate on

Brooke's needs rather than her own.

"Of course I wont tell them." Peyton finally said. "It's none of Lucas' business and Nathan.. he should hear it from you."

"We'll see." Brooke replied, though knowing she wouldn't ever consider this. "Okay, well I have a ton of packing to do, but this was fun. We should do it again sometime." she said this sardonically as she walked past the blonde and toward the staircase.

"Where are you going to go?" Peyton questioned, ignoring the obvious hint laid out for her.

"I haven't exactly figured that out yet.. but when I do, you'll be the first to know. It'll be slumber parties galore!"

"I'd like that." Peyton replied, choosing to ignore the sarcasm. "I would ask you to stay with me, but I have a feeling you wouldn't go for that.."

"I would.." Brooke said slowly, already halfway up the staircase. "but I wouldn't want to be recruited by hell's angels or anything.."

Peyton laughed, and Brooke raised an eyebrow at the blonde's strange reaction. As horrible as it was, Brooke's words were intended to hurt. Peyton clearly interpreted it as friendly bickering.

"Me and Lucas are going to Haley and Nathan's tonight.. to help them pack."

Brooke vaguely remembered the happy couple moving in with Deb.

"You can have the apartment back, Brooke!" Peyton said, happily. She paused, as if waiting for Brooke to pounce on her with glee. "Isn't that great?"

Brooke casually glanced around, taking in her surroundings. "Well, it _will _be a step down.." The last thing Brooke wanted was to give Peyton the satisfaction of knowing that this news had genuinely made her entire day. "But, uh.. I guess living there again wont be complete torture."

"Right.." Peyton's face fell. "You're welcome?"

Brooke tucked a stray hair behind her ear. "I'm sorry, Peyton. Thank you _so _much! How is my former boyfriend?"'

If Peyton was hurt by this remark, she didn't let it on. Instead, she smoothly replied, "How's his brother?" before swiftly exiting the house.

Brooke inwardly scolded herself. She was over Lucas. There was no reason to provoke the person who knew the one thing that would absolutely destroy her.

Brooke hated the fact that someone knew this much about her life.

Strange as it may be, Brooke anticipated and even somewhat looked forward to screwing up again.

And if history did, in fact, have a way of repeating itself, the next catastrophe was surely to occur sometime in the foreseeable future.

As horrible as it sounded, another secret would give her that much-needed feeling of control...

The knowledge that, when it came down to it, she was the only one who could fuck up her own life.

"Maybe I should reconsider sleeping with Lucas..." Again, she smiled before quickly dismissing the thought.

Maybe she didn't hate Peyton as much as she thought she did..

-------

"I can't believe we're leaving this place.." Haley said, glancing around the soon to be vacant apartment. "I mean, it just holds so many memories."

"Yeah.." Nathan said, slowly. "I mean, there was the time your drunk-ass sister moved in and tried to seduce me.."

Haley laughed at this while waiting patiently for him to continue.

"Um.. the time I demolished your keyboard when you went off on tour.."

"Hey!" Haley intervened. "I resent that!"

"Oh!" Nathan went on, ignoring her. "There was the time I got hauled off to jail after your ragin' party.."

Haley feigned offence before lightly pushing him down on the couch and hovering over him. "How 'bout the time you decorated the place with rose petals and we had our honeymoon.. right there in that very bedroom." If possible, her voice softened even more. "What about the time I got pregnant.. and we knew it'd be hard, but we'd get through it.. together." she paused while looking into his eyes. "Always and forever, baby."

"I love you." he said, pulling her down onto his lap. A single tear rolled down her cheek. He tenderly brushed it away. "That will always be true, Haley.. no matter where we live."

"I know." she said, quietly. "I'm just.. pregnant.. and emotional." she paused. "I think the baby would have liked it here."

"Well, if Brooke moves in, he can come back and visit his first home anytime he wants."

"Brooke.." Haley said slowly as her eyes filled with regret. "I said some things last night.. I think I inadvertently took Peyton's side. Anyway, she seemed to really be hurt by it. I feel awful."

"She's been having a hard time lately.." Nathan said, concern evident in his features. "We just have to be there for her. That's all we can do."

"Just so we're clear on this, you understand that 'being there' for someone doesn't necessarily mean jumping into bed with them.. right?" she laughed at her husband's panicked expression. "Kidding." she said, slapping him playfully on the chest before getting up. "Come on, Mr. Scott. We've got a lot of work to do."

Nathan sat for a minute, his mind evidently elsewhere, before finally complying.

-------

Peyton walked into Lucas' bedroom, slowly closing the door behind her.

Lucas sat up on his bed. "How is she?" he asked, wasting no time with formalities.

Peyton sighed, wondering if the feisty brunette would always occupy her boyfriend's mind. "She's fine." Peyton replied, hoping to ease his worries.

"Are you sure?" he replied. "Because last night-"

"Well, yeah, Luke.. she's not exactly the 'captain of the cheer sluts' Brooke that we all know and love, but considering everything, she's _fine_."

"Are you ... fine?" Lucas replied, finally noticing the blonde's edginess.

"That all depends.." Peyton said slowly, desperately longing for the courage to speak her mind. "Are you still in love with Brooke?"

"What?" Lucas spat, the question clearly taking him off guard.

"Are you just settling for me?" Peyton went on. "It just.. seems like you're always pre-occupied with Brooke. Please tell me the truth, Lucas. I have to know."

Lucas took a moment to collect his thoughts. Finally, he motioned for Peyton to sit next to him on the bed. She hesitantly complied.

"I am _not _settling for you, Peyton." he said, his blue eyes confirming this. "Do I think things could have worked out between me and Brooke?" he glanced around aimlessly, breaking his eye contact with

Peyton as he said this. "Yeah. I was happy with her.. She just has this carefree attitude about life.. and this fun loving personality-"

"Lucas Scott," Peyton interrupted. "You _really _know how to sweep a girl off her feet." she said this dryly as she had secretly been hoping for him to declare his never-ending love for her.. _Peyton._

This freed him from his trance. He looked down at her and smiled. "I'm happy with you, too." he said, hoping to reassure her. "These past few months have been some of the best of my life, and I wouldn't trade what we have for anything."

"Do you really mean that?" Peyton asked, though knowing he could not thoroughly convince her if he tried.

"Of course." he replied. "Now we better get going.. Nathan and Haley are expecting us."

"Yeah.. yeah, you're right. We should go." she accepted his extended hand as they left, but still could not rid herself of the uneasiness. She wondered if Brooke would be at the apartment. After all, she _did _

agree to move in. She did not vocalize this thought, but with just one swift glance at Lucas, she knew he was wondering the same thing.

-------

Haley bent over to pick up a box labeled "books". Her fingers barely grazed the cardboard when Nathan scooped it up, denying her its reach.

"What are you doing?" he asked, an alarmed expression on his face.

"You took the words right out of my mouth." she replied, planting her hands on her hips. He somehow managed to wordlessly demand more of an explanation. She sighed. "I was going to take that box out to the car.. what did you think I was doing?"

"Well, it looked to me like you were begging for a miscarriage.. I could be wrong." he offered.

"What?" Haley's eyes widened. She couldn't believe that those words had actually escaped his mouth.

"Listen.." his tone softened as he set the box down and guided her to the couch. "You're pregnant, Haley. That means no heavy-lifting. That's why I asked Lucas and Peyton to come and help."

Haley scoffed. "The guy with the heart condition.. _really?_ And don't even get me started on Peyton's scrawny little arms."

"I heard that!" The couple turned to see Lucas and Peyton standing in the doorway. "And if you weren't pregnant, I'd take you down." Peyton joked.

Haley laughed at this.

"Seriously," Lucas cut in. "She's taken up boxing. She could take _me _down."

Haley laughed some more before her face became sullen. She turned to Nathan. "I hate this." she said. "What am I supposed to do? I want to help."

Nathan smiled as he stood up and retrieved a cushion from where he was formerly sitting. He offered it to Haley.

She pouted some more, but accepted the cushion from his hands. "I hate this." she repeated.

"Are you kidding?" Lucas said, carrying the abandoned box of books toward the doorway.

"He's right." Peyton said, following her boyfriend. "Never before have I actually wished I was pregnant."

"Peyton.." Haley said, hauling the cushion over her shoulder and joining the line. "You're carrying a lamp."

Their voices faded as they made their way outside. Nathan was suddenly overcome with an unexplainable sadness as he watched them. He knew that there was something missing in this picture. Regardless of this, he picked up a random box and followed their invisible footsteps.

-------

It was not long after that the four were standing in the middle of the now completely vacant apartment. Haley struggled to withstand her emotions as the rest looked on sadly.

"Peyton, did you say that Brooke was moving in..?" Lucas said, finally vocalizing what was on everyone's mind.

"I'm here now." A muffled voice could be heard from behind them, calling Lucas on either his incredibly good or incredible bad timing. "But it's good to know I was missed."

"Brooke?" They turned to see her tiny frame lingering at the doorway. She had an overnight bag slung over one arm while a pillow occupied the other. She wore a wife beater and sweatpants and had her

freshly-washed hair slicked back into a tight ponytail. She was the vision of someone intent on starting over.

Haley, though pregnant, was the first to reach her friend. She greeted her with a hug as the others formed a line behind her.

"I-uh.." Peyton stumbled over her words, watching as her boyfriend enveloped the brunette in a hug. "I guess we sort of just assumed that you were staying at Rachel's tonight."

"Well.. I was going to, but I guess her dad is kind of a perv.. and um.. I sleep naked." she smiled as Lucas and Nathan exchanged a look. "I know that first impressions aren't _everything..._" she went on. "But I also didn't want him finding my handcuffs... or my candy thong."

She received a typical guy reaction from Lucas and Nathan while Peyton and Haley simply stared at her, their mouths hanging slightly open.

"I'm kidding." she finally said, dropping her duffel bag at the doorway and walking further into the room. "But I'm glad you all took me seriously and brought back all the awkwardness I was trying to avoid."

"Um, Brooke.." Peyton started, hoping to rid her boyfriend of all the images Brooke had just planted in his head. "Where's all your stuff?"

Brooke nodded toward her duffel bag while scanning the empty apartment.

"There's no furniture." Haley added. "We just packed it all up."

"Where did you plan on sleeping tonight?" Peyton asked, immediately cursing herself for bringing up a sleeping Brooke in front of Lucas.

Brooke waved her pillow in the air before hugging it tightly to her chest. "I brought inside what I would need for tonight." she said. "Everything else is in the car."

"Well let's go get it." Nathan said, nudging Lucas and moving toward the door.

"No.. Nate." Brooke placed a hand on his arm to stop him. "I'm tired. Really, it can wait."

"Well then we'll do it." he replied, motioning to his brother, who readily agreed. "You rest."

A small smile appeared on her face. "Thanks, Nate." she said gratefully, watching as he, Lucas, and Peyton disappeared outside. She relished in the idea of Nathan taking care of her.. until she remembered that this wasn't the same asshole that had treated her as nothing short of a porn star while tricking her into making a sex tape.. Nathan was genuinely a good guy now. He would do it for anybody.

"I guess I'll keep you company." Haley said, stealing a page from Brooke's playbook while linking arms with the slightly taller brunette. "Seeing as how I've been banned from all heavy lifting."

"Thanks, tutor-girl." Brooke said, gently patting Haley's arm.

"Anytime, tigger." Haley replied with a small smile. "Hey, if you want I'll make you some tea." Brooke opened her mouth to speak, but Haley stopped her. "It's no trouble at all." she assured.

Brooke laughed. "Sure, if you can make it out of _nothing.._ I'll have a cup."

Haley shook her head at her stupidity. "You know what?" she said. "There's a Starbucks right down the street.. If I go now, I can be back in ten minutes."

"No, really.. you don't have to."

"No, it's fine." Haley replied, grabbing her keys off the counter. "I think we could all go for some coffee.. I-uh.. I would invite you to come, but right now the TV and Nathan's play station sort of occupy the

front seat."

Brooke nodded. "Um.. thanks?" she offered.

Haley smiled before abruptly leaving the apartment. Nathan seemingly took her place. A box labeled "sex stuff" balanced underneath his left arm while a pair of handcuffs dangled from his fingertips. "You said you were kidding." he teased, a smile playing on his lips.

"Oh God." Brooke froze in place as her face turned a light shade of pink. "I _was_.." she replied, interpreting his doubtful expression. "About sleeping naked." still mortified, she snatched the handcuffs from his grasp. "You know.." she said, stroking the metal with her fingertips while quickly plotting her revenge. "Your brother bought these for me on Valentine's Day." she smiled at his horrified expression. "This is a funny story, really.." she laughed as he dropped the box and fled from the apartment. Smiling, she picked it up, intent on finding a good hiding spot for it in the bedroom. Now if Peyton ever provoked her to such an extreme extent again, she held the helpful knowledge of how to give the blonde a heart attack.

-------

Forty-five minutes later, the once empty apartment was filled with boxes. The five friends sipped coffee as they took in their surroundings. It wasn't so sad anymore. Even Haley had dry eyes.

"Thanks, you guys." Brooke said. Although there was still quite a bit of unpacking to be done, she was sure she could call this place "home" again. "The last couple days have been.. well.. you all know. You

were there." she paused. "But anyway, I really needed this."

To Peyton's dismay, Lucas wrapped an arm around Brooke and lightly kissed her forehead. "We're here for you." he said. "Whatever you need."

"Say, I have an idea." Haley announced. "Why don't we all stay here tonight?" To her surprise, no one objected. Nathan was actually eager to have one last night in the apartment.

"Where are we going to sleep?" Peyton wanted to know.

Haley responded by taking the pillow Brooke had permanently attached herself to and tossing it at Peyton. "It's a sleepover, blondie!" she said, happily. "We're sleeping on the floor!"

Following an impromptu pillow fight in which the girls had dominated, the five laid in a circle on the living room floor. For reasons Brooke herself could not explain, she was delighted to be sleeping next to

Nathan. She watched as he slept, for she was seemingly the only one still awake.

_"Brooke..."_

The whisper had undoubtedly belonged to Peyton. She regretfully rolled over. Of course, she had preferred facing Nathan.. so close that she could feel his breath on her skin. She inwardly scolded herself.

After all, the guy was _married. "What?" _she hissed, annoyed that Peyton had interrupted her Nathan-watching. Wow.. the sex box didn't reveal the half of it.. Brooke Davis was a sick woman.

"Does watching Nathan while he sleeps remind you of something that you have to do..?"

_Damn._ The bitch knew.

"I was _not_ watching him."she, of course, denied.

"Oh, come on."Peyton replied. "We've been best friends for a decade. I know you sleep on your left side.. not your right."

_"No.." _Brooke said, slowly. "I am _not_ reminded of something I _supposedly_ have to do." she said decidedly, choosing to tackle the other part of the accusation. _"Goodnight."_

Just as she was starting to roll over, Peyton grabbed her arm, demanding her attention once again. "Does the fact that you aborted his child ring any bells?"

Brooke's facial expression morphed into stone. "Okay.. _One_: That was a long time ago and _Two_: Mind your own damn business. I'm _not_ telling him."

Brooke rolled over, this time successfully, and retired to her previous position. She heard a loud sigh from behind, but chose to ignore it. She was happy watching Nathan.. fantasizing of what would never be.

Unbeknownst to her, she had a spectator of her own. Lucas Scott, having had overheard the entire conversation, sank further into his sleeping bag, wishing that the scene that had just unfolded before him was all just a dream.. or a nightmare, for that matter.

-------

_Review, pleeeeaase!! ;)_


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: Still don't own anything..

Author's Note: First off, I want to apologize for the extremely long delay! I wanted to get this up as soon as I could to reward you all for the amazing reviews.. but, as you can see, that didn't work out too well. Just know that I appreciate the feedback more than anything, and I'll try to do better next time! Thanks to **TypoKween **for the birthday/graduation wishes! I think that you and some others will be quite pleased with one particular event in this chapter.. Oh, and I'd like to apologize in advance for an extremely dramatic Lucas.. haha. Oh, and to clear up all confusion, this is a Brathan story. Brucas and Naley will have their moments, but the primary ship is Brooke/Nathan. I hope that doesn't repel anyone. hahaha. Okay, well don't forget to drop a review, because they seriously do make my day! Now.. on with the story..

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Brooke hated being alone. It didn't matter if she was living with Rachel, Haley, or Karen. Hell, even Peyton was preferable to complete and utter detachment. Her parents were scarcely around while she was growing up. Consequently, she had learned to treasure companionship more than anything. Perhaps this was why she would walk to Peyton's house everyday just to ensure that her favorite friend hadn't forgotten about her.. or why, years later, her _friendliness_ had earned her a new reputation- one that her parents, had they ever paid the slightest bit of attention to her life, would _not _have been proud of.

The fact that she was now legally an adult didn't change a thing. Waking up in the apartment that she had recently reclaimed, Brooke was saddened that there was no one around to eat breakfast with.. or to share her dreams with.. or to fight over the bathroom with..

This was why she was so pleasantly surprised when she opened her door that morning to find Lucas Scott and a box of donuts. She was quick to greet him. Once they were both settled on a kitchen stool, she was also quick to dismiss the fact that she was technically on a diet.

It had been over a week since she moved in, and yet various boxes still claimed most of the floor space. She frowned when Lucas shook his head disapprovingly.

"Are we really going to do this right now, Luke?" she said, exasperated. "It's 10 o'clock in the morning."

"No." Lucas relented. "I didn't come here to argue with you." He got up and maneuvered to the refrigerator, skillfully weaving through the boxes.

"Then why did you come here?" Brooke replied, deciding that there really was no nice way of putting that. "This is the third morning in a row that you've joined me for breakfast." she continued, her voice softening. "Is it Peyton? Is she sending you over here to fatten me up?" she motioned to the chocolate-covered donut in her hand and laughed. "Seriously, Luke. What's up?"

Lucas poured himself a glass of milk. It wasn't usually his choice beverage, but it was the only item in her refrigerator. He had bought it for her yesterday. He wondered how many mornings- how many boxes of donuts and glasses of milk- it would take before he would finally gain the courage to confront her about what he had overheard. "Nothing." he finally said. "I just thought you could use the company."

Judging by the fact that he had just blown the perfect opportunity, it would be a while..

"Well thank you, Lucas. I really do appreciate it." she replied, revealing her signature dimples. "I probably wont appreciate it when I'm the heaviest girl at fashion school.." she went on, debating whether or not she should finish off the second half of her donut. "Maybe tomorrow you'll spring for fruit and yogurt?" she took one last bite before carelessly dropping the remainder in the trash can.

"You got it." He hoisted himself up onto the counter top with ease. "Pretty girl."

She smiled at the nickname. "Yeah, well if you keep bringing me donuts, I'll be breaking-the-scale girl."

The two smiled and it remained this way until the door opened and a head full of blonde curls came into the picture. It was Peyton, obviously. She entered carrying a brown, paper bag. "Hey Brooke.. I don't mean to barge in like this, but-" she stopped when her eyes landed on Lucas. "What are you doing here?" she said, unsuccessfully attempting to conceal her displeasure.

"Donut?" Brooke offered the box to Peyton, who abruptly shook her head. Clearly, Brooke's attempt to ease the tension had also failed.

"We were just having breakfast." Lucas replied, hopping down from the counter to greet her. What he hoped would be swift movement transformed into awkward dodging of boxes. He settled for a wave.

"Well then I guess it's a good thing I brought fruit and yogurt." Peyton said, retrieving the items from the bag. Though she was clearly still uneasy, she relaxed a bit at the mention of breakfast.

"Did you bring orange juice?" Brooke asked, slowly.

"No."

"I-uh.. I need orange juice, I'm sorry. I'll just run to the store real quick and get some." As obvious as it may have been, Brooke sensed that the not-so-happy couple needed to "talk". "You two make yourselves at home. You know.. what's mine is yours. You're familiar with that, right Peyton?" After all this time, Brooke still could not resist the cheap shots. "I'll be back."

Peyton waited until Brooke was out the door and in her car to break the ice. "So.." she began, plastering on a fake smile. "You've been visiting Brooke?"

Lucas opened his mouth to speak just as Brooke was starting her car. Peyton shifted her weight uncomfortably. "Well.." Peyton raised an eyebrow at this. "Yeah." he finished. "Are you okay with that?"

"I don't know." she replied, setting down the grocery bag and moving toward him. "How many times have you been here?"

His eyes cast downward. "Four or five."

Her blue eyes widened. "Four or five?" she repeated. "She's barely been here a week. You don't return my calls, but somehow you find the time to visit your ex-girlfriend four or five times?"

"She needs her friends right now, Peyton." He replied, calmly. "I'm just trying to help her out."

"That may be true, but _I _need my _boyfriend_ right now. I'm tired of having a relationship with your answering machine." Peyton knew that she was walking on thin ice and that she should stop if she had any interest of keeping her boyfriend, but all of her built-up anger and frustrations were impossible to deny.

"I'm sorry-"

"Don't even bother apologizing if you plan on making the same mistakes again." she took a deep breath. "I know you're trying to be a good friend to Brooke, and I love you for it, Luke.. I really do. I just need you to focus on me right now. Can you do that?" she felt tears welling up in her eyes as she was fearful for his response.

Following her rant was a ridiculously long silence. Lucas stared at the floor, deep in thought. Peyton stared at Lucas. His eyes finally met hers. At this point, she had no idea what to expect.

"I love you, Peyton." he said, softly. "There's always been a connection between us, and.." he paused. "I really can't believe I'm doing this, because part of me really believed that we'd be together forever.."

"It's Brooke, isn't it?" Peyton replied, making no effort to hide her tears, for she knew it would be impossible to do.

"I don't know." Lucas replied, honestly. "Maybe it is Brooke.. maybe I haven't met her yet. I'm not ruling anything out.."

"Right.." Peyton said, sadly. "Besides me?"

"It's complicated." he replied. "We were both so young when we fell for each other.. I just think that maybe we were too caught up with the concept of love to realize that there could be something else out there." he sighed. "Not only that, but our relationship hurt so many people. I don't know if I'll ever forgive myself for driving you and Brooke apart.. or for hurting my brother."

"Nathan and Haley never would have happened if it weren't for us." Peyton pointed out. "He would still be a self-righteous bastard, and Brooke.." she wiped ferociously at her tears. "It changed her for the better."

"I don't have any regrets." he replied. "We all changed because of it.. and that's part of the reason why I can't be with you anymore."

If possible, her heart sank even more. She had given up so much to be with him..

"I love you." he repeated, and she hated him for saying it. The words contained so much finality. It killed her.

"I love you, too." she replied. "I love you so much, Lucas.. that if and when you decide that this was a mistake.. I'll take you back, no questions asked."

With that, she turned on her heel and retreated from the room, wishing so desperately that he would stop her.. but he never did.

-------

Brooke returned and was surprised to find a completely vacant apartment. Finally, the perfect opportunity to unpack. She laughed quietly as she was quick to dismiss the thought. Instead, she withdrew a bottle of vodka from the brown, paper bag resting in her arm. She had bribed the guy at the liquor store. She eyed the jug of orange juice in her other hand.. time for a mid-morning screwdriver. Of course, the doorbell rang before she was able to see this task through.

She slowly walked toward the door. Lucas and Peyton had already graced her with their presence. By process of elimination, the surprise visitor must be.. "Naley!" she exclaimed upon opening the door.

The sight that she had formerly thought to be so comforting now made her slightly uneasy. Nathan and Haley stood, hand-in-hand, at her doorstep. Haley's protruding stomach demanded all attention. This was why it took Brooke so long to notice the frown on her friend's face. "What's up?" her face fell. She panicked. Did they _know_? Did Peyton tell them? Had Brooke finally provoked the bitch to her breaking point?

"Lucas and Peyton broke up."

A blind man could see Brooke's face mend into one of relief. After receiving a pair of odd looks, she attempted a sad face.

"It's so out of the blue.." Haley stepped into the apartment and, Brooke couldn't help but notice, pulled Nathan along as if he were a helpless puppy. "Do you know what happened?"

Although her words were spoken kindly, Brooke knew it was nothing short of a sugar-coated accusation. Two could play this game.

"Gosh, I don't know, Haley." she said in her sweetest voice possible. "Maybe they realized that the ex-girlfriend doesn't care and is not going to go all out on an investigation?"

Okay, so maybe they weren't exactly playing the same game?

Though her eyes were locked with Haley's, she could see Nathan cracking a smile out of the corner of her eye.

"I'm sorry." Haley finally said. "I just hope it's not awkward now.. the five of us hanging out together.."

Brooke slowly nodded. "Right." she responded. "Because it wasn't awkward for me.. being the fifth wheel or anything?"

Brooke immediately felt guilty at the sight of Haley's expression. She was acting like a bitch, and she knew it. She sighed and took a deep breath. She needed to explain herself.

"I'm sorry, Haley," she said. "but this news... doesn't really affect me. I'm not going to cry myself to sleep, nor am I going to pounce on Lucas the first chance I get." she risked a glance at Nathan and was surprised to see relief written on his face. Could she be mistaking? She hoped not. "I'm over it." she finished, her eyes still locked with his.

Her trance was soon disrupted when Haley's cell phone went off and an obnoxious buzzing sound filled the apartment. Haley was forced to break her apparent death grip on Nathan's hand in order to answer it. Brooke smiled at this.

"Hello?" Haley said, somewhat importantly, into her phone. "No, don't be ridiculous.." she paused. "Of course, Nathan and I will be right over."

Brooke frowned. Did Nathan not have a mind of his own? Could he not speak for himself? Maybe he didn't want to go? Maybe he wanted to stay with her? Maybe ... _she was losing her fucking mind._

"That was Peyton." she informed them. "Baby, we've gotta go." she reattached her hand to Nathan's and tugged gently. "She needs us."

"Emo music and half-naked drawings of my brother.." Nathan said, speaking for the first time since their arrival. "How lucky am I?"

"Pretty damn lucky." Haley responded. "Because if you make it through today, you might just see a half-naked wife in your bed tonight."

Nathan's mouth dropped as Brooke's eyes widened in horror. "Okay, married couple.. keep it PG, if you will?" she nudged Haley. "Since when did you start sounding like me?"

Haley laughed in response, categorizing the question as reciprocal. "We'll see you later, Brooke."

"Thanks for stopping by." she said, opening the door for them. "...and for that lasting visual image." she finished upon closing it.

She was only halfway across the room, fully intent on returning to her vodka, when there was yet another knock on her door. "What the hell does a girl gotta do to finish a drink around here?" She said, looking skyward. She sighed before turning around and, again, making her way toward the door.

"Lucas?" she said upon opening the door. "What are you doing here?" she gently pulled him inside.

"I broke up with Peyton." he replied, wasting no time with formalities.

"I know, and I'm sorry, but-" she stopped. "Wait.. _you _broke up with _her_?"

He nodded, absentmindedly fiddling with the drawstring of his basketball shorts.

"Why?" she managed to say through her shock. "I mean.. I know that she's an emo bitch, but I thought that the two of you had an 'emotional connection.'" Upon realizing that the air quotes weren't helping any, Brooke immediately placed her hands on her slender hips.

"I thought we did." he replied. "But we're in high school." Brooke nodded along, and so he continued. "Investing that much in a high school relationship? You're just setting yourself up for disappointment."

"Damn." Brooke replied, laughing in spite of herself. "I wish that someone would've told us two years ago that neither of us would end up with you." she shook her head. "It would've saved a lot of trouble."

Lucas didn't laugh. In fact, he wore one of the most intense expressions Brooke had ever seen.

"Lucas..." she started. She knew where this was going.. and she knew where this would ultimately end: nowhere.

"I think we should try to work things out." he said before she could stop him.

A few months ago, Brooke would have readily agreed.. if for nothing else than to get back at Peyton. Things were different now. Brooke didn't know if she was a better person for seeing the error in her ways or a worse person for being so hopelessly in love with Lucas' brother. Either way, neither of these excuses would help her out now. "Didn't you just say that high school relationships were a waste of time?" she said, somewhat pathetically.

"That's not what I meant.." he said, taking a step closer. She responded by automatically taking a step back. He frowned. "It was a waste of time for me to think that I had found my soul mate when I was sixteen." he explained. "But hanging out with a cute, funny cheerleader?" A small smile appeared on her face, and he took this opportunity to close the gap between them. "That was _not _a waste of time. Being with you was the best time of my life. We had fun together.. We can have that again, Brooke."

Brooke considered this for a moment. They really did have fun together.. but getting back together with Lucas, she decided, would be taking the easy way out. She had been doing that her entire life. Everything had always been handed to her on a silver platter. And now a gorgeous guy stood before her, begging for a chance, and in return offered what seemed to be the solution to all of her problems.. It just wouldn't be fair. Lucas would simply serve as a distraction from her loneliness.. and her infatuation with Nathan.. Though she wanted to, she couldn't hide behind him forever. The temporary distraction would not make her problems disappear.

"I can't." she said, softly. She risked a glance at him and consequently ended up drinking in his entire appearance.. his flawless physique.. his baby blue eyes that were begging with her to reconsider.. Damn.. She deserved a medal or something.. The right thing was hard to do.

"Why not?" Lucas replied, challenging her to confess what he already knew.

She crossed her arms over her chest and sighed. Though the lying was taking an obvious toll on her, the one thing Brooke Davis knew how to do was stand her ground. "It's just ... I can't be in a relationship with a guy that can't make up his fucking mind." Her words were spoken sweetly through clenched teeth ... as if she were threatening a two-year-old.

Lucas opened his mouth, most likely about to defend himself, but Brooke intervened.

"Let's see ... Are you pining for Peyton or boning for Brooke? Would you like orange juice or coffee? Boxers or briefs?" she raised an eyebrow, acknowledging his challenge and daring him to see it through.

Lucas was no stranger to Brooke's games. Yet, he could not bring himself to vocalize his worst fear. Instead, he decided to follow through with his original plan. "I'm boning for Brooke." he said, lamely. She raised an eyebrow at this. "Your words, not mine." he sighed, somehow he was managing to _not _get his point across _and_ make an ass out of himself at the same time. He ran a hand through his shaggy, unkempt hair ... mentally planning a regroup. "Look.. what I'm trying to say is.. I know that I've been a bit uncertain in the past.."

Brooke scoffed. "Understatement of the year?"

"Right." he replied. "But I know now.. I'm the guy for you, Brooke Davis."

Brooke's mind flashed back to a time when that line literally floored her. But now? She was just annoyed that he lacked either the creativity or the drive to think of something new. For someone who was aspiring to be an author, this truly was disappointing. "You've said that before. How do I know that you mean it this time?"

"You're just going to have to trust me."

_Again... real original. _"I've tried that.. twice. And it came back to bite me in the ass. For all I know, 'trust me' actually means 'I'm gonna go suck face with Peyton.'"

"Brooke..."

"I mean, if history has a way of repeating itself.." she interrupted.

"Brooke, please.."

He was begging with her, she knew, because he really was sorry.. because he wanted another chance.. because he loved her? No matter what the extent, Brooke only found herself growing increasingly annoyed with his persistence. "Lucas.." she said, resisting the urge to snap at him. "It's not going to work, okay?"

There was a moment of silence before Lucas finally nodded. He backed away from her and headed for the doorway. It seemed as though he was going to accept this ... that he was going to walk away no questions asked ... but then he stopped dead in his tracks, and Brooke knew that whatever he had to say would not be good.

"I just hope you're not holding out for my brother."

"What?" Brooke choked. Her mind was racing. _How did he know? Was it Peyton? Of course.. it had to be. If so, she was one dead bitch.._

"I overheard you and Peyton talking." The intense expression on his face told her that he wasn't bluffing. "I know about the abortion, too."

"I-I didn't.. I don't-" Brooke spat out one incoherent sentence after another, and Lucas knew that he had finally gained the control he had been longing for since the moment he had first met Brooke Davis.

His expression softened a bit at the sight before him. Brooke was a mess. He had never seen her this way before. How could he treat her this way just moments after declaring his love for her? "I'm not going to tell Nathan." he said, softly. The words had barely left his lips before Brooke's arms were wrapped around him. "Thanks, Luke! It's like I was trying to tell Peyton.. It would only end up hurting-" she stopped when she saw the look on his face. "You are." he finished.

-------

Brooke sat on her doorstep, staring at the ground and listening for Nathan's car. Basically, Lucas had given her an ultimatum. If she didn't tell Nathan about the abortion, he would. Brooke had pegged it as revenge.. as Lucas' immature way of getting back at her for turning him down. He had, of course, claimed otherwise. "I'm just trying to do the right thing." he had said.

Lucas had watched as her trembling hands dialed Nathan's number. He was at Peyton's still, but more than willing to leave early on her account. And with Nathan on the way, Lucas made an overdue exit.

Brooke was furious with Lucas for making her do this.. but perhaps even more furious with herself for not doing it sooner.

Her head shot up at the sound of an engine. It was, in fact, Nathan Scott. He climbed out of his car. If possible, he was taller and even more handsome then she remembered. She nearly broke down when he smiled at her. She didn't deserve that. She had unfairly mapped out his entire future for him. He was going to hate her, and she couldn't even blame him.

"First of all, thank you for saving me." he said, joining her on the doorstep.

Despite her current state, she managed a smile. She liked the sound of that. "From what?"

"Let's just put it this way.. I'm on a bed with two hot girls, and I'm bored."

She laughed. Here she was literally falling apart at the seam ... and Nathan somehow had the capability to make her laugh. She stopped when she reminded herself of the task at hand. "Nathan.." she said, slowly.. painfully. "We need to talk."

"Okay." he wore a calm expression, though deep down he was alarmed. He couldn't place it, but he knew that there was something very wrong.

She cleared her throat. This was it. After this, Nathan would most likely never want to see her again. 'The truth will set you free' ... _Yeah, free to be miserable. _"Nathan, um.. Do you remember a couple years ago when we, uh.. when we had-"

"Sex?" Nathan finished for her. "Not really. But I'm sure it was awesome."

She smiled in spite of herself. Why did he have to be so cute and funny? Why couldn't he just be the clueless asshole he was two years ago? It would make this a lot easier.. "Yeah." she replied. "Well, um.. there's something else that I didn't tell you about-"

Suddenly, Nathan's cell phone went off. She gave him a puzzled look as he reached for it apologetically. "Sorry.. hold that thought."

Brooke initially couldn't decide whether the interruption was a good thing or a bad thing, but once she heard Nathan's frantic voice, she knew that it was definitely a bad thing.

"Peyton, calm down ... Well, is she okay?" he was on his feet and pacing nervously at this point. "Okay, I'll be there as soon as I can." he snapped his phone shut and turned to Brooke. "It's Haley.. and the baby.. I have to go."

She nodded. "I'm coming with you."

Though Brooke knew she wasn't permanently off the hook, her priorities were quick to alter as her fear of telling Nathan was soon replaced with concern for her best friend. She had initially thought that this day would be the death of her. And now, as she sat living and breathing in Nathan's car.. she wondered if someone else wasn't.

-------

Review ... _please??!_


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I don't own OTH.

Author's Note: It's been a while, I know.. I'm sorry for the delay! I just started college, and it's so extremely demanding! For once, I promise you I am not to blame! haha well...maybe a little bit? Anyway, I would like to thank you all for the amazing feedback! I know it seems like I've dissapeared, but I've read all of your comments multiple times, and they genuinely make my day! I hope you all enjoy this next chapter! Oh, and I'm thinking the final pairings will most likely be Brathan, Laley, Jeyton, and Routh, but nothing's set in stone yet, so if you have any disagreements or concerns be sure to let me know! I'm always glad to hear from ya! Now (finally!) on with the story...

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Brooke awoke from her sprawled position on the plastic hospital chair and instinctively reached for her neck, which was one of the many parts of her body that was throbbing in pain. She opened her eyes and realized that many of her limbs were tangled with Peyton's. And suddenly, the events from the previous night came flooding back to her.

"Coffee?"

She turned to her right to see Lucas' extended hand.

"How are you ... moving?"

"I opted for the floor." he explained. "Take it from someone who's spent a great deal of time in hospitals.. it was a much better alternative."

"How's Haley?" she asked, ignoring his attempt to lighten the mood.

Lucas opened his mouth to speak, but then noticed that Peyton was beginning to stir. He had yet to speak to her since the breakup. He motioned for Brooke to follow him and, despite her current state, she complied.

They were now moving down the hallway at a swift pace, which Brooke was struggling to maintain.

"Lucas.." she said, growing frustrated. She grabbed his arm and, with all the strength she had, pulled him back to face her. "Stop! You will not take another step until you update me on the condition of my best friend!"

"She's going to be okay." he said softly before tentatively returning to his previous pace.

"And the baby?" Brooke called after him. He stopped in his tracks before slowly turning to face her. He wore a pained expression.

"Oh."

-------

Nathan sat alone on the floor outside of Haley's hospital room. He wanted more than anything to be in there with her, but she had refused the company of any kind. His eyes were fixated on the wall in front of him, and his face was devoid of any emotion. He had ignored the complaints of passerbys, as his legs took up nearly half of the width of the busy hallway. He had brushed off the concerned nurses who were continuously offering him a glass of water or a place to lie down. Though he appeared to be stoic and indifferent, his mind was inwardly racing. He vaguely registered that he was no longer alone. Brooke and Lucas sat on either side of him, one was gently rubbing his back while the other was stringing together phrases that were meant to be comforting. However, the only thing that Nathan could possibly find comforting at the moment was that Brooke, he realized upon a swift glance, was the one rubbing his back. _Thank God!_

"It's going to be hard, but we're here for you." Lucas went on, though it felt like he was talking to a brick wall. "You don't have to go through this alone."

Brooke blinked back a tear, for she had been alone. If only she had had the support of her friends when she had been forced to endure a similar loss. She felt Lucas looking at her, and she regretfully glanced up at him. His eyes were filled with intensity and what appeared to be sympathy. Was it possible that he wasn't just talking to Nathan? She quickly looked away. "He's right." she said. Her voice was shaky, but she continued. "It's going to be okay, Nate. Believe me."

"And how would you know?" Nathan replied, speaking for the first time and coming as close to an outburst as possible, given his worn-down exterior. "You have no idea what I'm going through. The closest you've come to tragedy is when there's a shoe sale at the mall and they're out of your size." Nathan could see the tears surfacing in her beautiful, brown eyes, but for some reason could not bring himself to shut the hell up. "Oh, I'm sorry. I forgot that Lucas cheated on you with Peyton a million years ago. Move on, Brooke, the rest of us have. The world doesn't care anymore!"

Brooke looked away, trying her best to hold back the tears that were likely to fall. Had she just triggered that episode? That flashback to the arrogant asshole that had existed before Haley had worked her magic? The love triange had been an unfortunate incident, but for Nathan to think that that was her most tragic memory? "Fuck you." she whispered before getting up to leave.

"Brooke, wait." If it had been a voice other than Nathan's, she woudn't have complied. She paused for a moment while awaiting an explanation.

"I'm sorry." he said softly. Of course, he didn't mean any of that. To be honest, he thought his brother was a bastard for cheating on Brooke. "Please don't go. I need you right now." he paused. "I mean, me and Haley.. we both do."

She nodded. "You're lucky your wife just miscarried or-" she stopped, choosing not to finish that sentence for obvious reasons. "I'm sorry, I'm an idiot.."

"Well then join the club." Nathan motioned to a spot on the floor between him and Lucas, which she was quick to occupy.

And so the three of them sat side-by-side, each mourning a seperate loss.

Nathan and Brooke, of course, were torturing themselves with the question of "what if" and struggling to accept the fact that they would never meet the people that they loved more than anything in the world.

Lucas, though he knew he should be focusing on the tragedy that had just befallen his best friend and his brother, had problems of his own. Everyone knows that you only get one shot with a girl like Brooke Davis. If you're the luckiest guy in the world, you get two. And he had blown it ... twice.

"We're going to be okay." Brooke said and, although it was barely a whisper, it was enough to break the boys from their trances. "We have to be."

Lucas and Nathan nodded along, but neither of them were so sure at this point..

"Hi.."

The three of them looked up to see Peyton. She was modeling her trademark leather jacket, and blonde ringlets surrounded her face. She wore her "life sucks, I want to die" expression, which prompted Brooke to invite her to join the trio. Peyton was quick to comply. Her and Brooke hadn't been on the best of terms lately, and she was more than happy to accept anything the feisty brunette offered.

"So, um.. I heard about the baby." Peyton said slowly, situating herself next to Nathan. "I'm so sorry." her voice broke on the last word, and she inwardly scolded herself. The only upside of losing two moms was the increase in emotional stability.

"Thanks." Nathan replied, though he had been hoping that she wouldn't go there. "Sorry" didn't fix anything. A time machine, on the other hand? The capability to go back and fix the problem before it had even surfaced? _Better get to work, P.Sawyer. The transition from an artist to a scientist is a bumpy one.._

"How's Haley?"

Nathan shook his head, for Peyton had somehow managed to say the two things he had been praying she wouldn't within thirty seconds of arrival. "Not good."

Brooke, being the only one who could possibly relate, wished so badly she could console her friend.. that she could tell Haley the details of her similar loss. But, considering how she had been pregnant with _Nathan's_ child, she decided against it. In the interest of her safety, of course.

Though she was a bit slow, Peyton realized that now was not the time to ask questions. Rather, it was a moment for silence and to take comfort in the fact that you are not alone. She eyed Lucas, who was on the other side of Brooke, who was on the other side of Nathan. She cleared her throat, and he looked up at her questioningly. 'Can we talk?' she mouthed. He was a bit hesitant, but finally nodded in agreement. The two left the room, their absence lost on Brooke and Nathan.

"Is everything all right?" Lucas asked. His mind was in a completely different place, and he didn't know if he was up for one of Peyton's meltdowns.

She gave him a look, as if to say, 'are you kidding me?'

"Right, of course.." At that moment, he couldn't even think straight, let alone help someone else through their grief. "What did you want to talk to me about?"

She took a deep breath and dug her hands deep into her pockets. "Did I ever tell you that Jake and I were engaged?"

He shook his head. _Why was she telling him this?_

"It was short lived." she went on. "I mean, obviously we didn't get married.." she revealed a small smile.

"Why not?" Lucas replied, showing interest for the first time. Jake was a good friend of his, and he was crazy about Peyton... He closed his eyes as realization dawned on him.

"I came back to be with you." Peyton's voice was soft and fragile. "And, um.." she paused, furiously wiping at the tears that threatened to spill from her unbelievably big, blue eyes. "You just ended things so suddenly.. and I need to know why."

Lucas frowned. He hated that he had made her cry. He may not love her the way he used to, but he still hated to see her in pain. Part of him- the part that felt that he and Brooke were a hopeless cause- wanted to take her back, and he actually contemplated this for a brief moment. But even if Brooke would never take him back, he would be settling, and that wouldn't be fair to either of them. "I thought I explained-"

Peyton laughed incredulously. "All I wanted was an explanation, and you.." she paused, searching for the right words. "..wrote a _poem _about it or something. I love that you're intuitive, Luke.. I really do, but right now I just need the blunt, unpolished, non-sugarcoated _truth_."

"I'm in love with Brooke." he said before he could stop himself. Peyton bit her bottom lip and nodded, and suddenly he regretted ever opening his lying, cheating mouth. "I'm sorry."

"Why Brooke?" She didn't seem angry.. just genuinely curious - in a sad, defeated way, of course.

"She may be the most stubborn, infuriating person on the face of this earth.." he said slowly. "But she makes me happy." There it was. The blunt, unpolished, non-sugarcoated truth. He felt alive when he was with Brooke. And when he was with Peyton? He felt like he was a character on one of those angsty teen dramas he hated ... but Brooke loved.

"Well there you go." Peyton replied, easing herself onto a nearby hostpital chair. It's not that she hadn't suspected it, but hearing the words come directly from his mouth hit her like a ton of bricks.

He sat down on the chair next to her and took one of her hands in his. "No, no.. don't be sad." he pleaded. "I want us to be friends, Peyton.. It just wasn't working."

"I don't know if I can be just friends with you." she said, her voice breaking. _What the hell?_ Nathan and Haley had just lost a child, and she was crying over a boy? She made a point to calm down, but this proved to be a difficult, if not impossible, task. "We've tried. Multiple times. It never works."

He smiled sadly. "We've tried a relationship multiple times as well.. but that hasn't worked out too well for us, either."

"Because you don't want it to!" she insisted. She knew she was begging, and she hated herself for it, but she had so thoroughly convinced herself that Lucas was the guy for her.. How could he not be? She could tell by the pained expression on his face that she was making things difficult. She wanted to be with him, but more than that she wanted him to be happy. Love was, after all, about sacrafise. "But, uh.. I guess we can try to make the friends thing work." she offered. "I mean, if you think it would be different this time.."

"I really do." he replied, happy that she finally understood what he wanted out of their relationship. "You mean a lot to me, Peyton. That will never change."

"We should probably get back." she said, brushing him off. Clearly, she was bitter that she had seemingly lost this battle. She stood up and abruptly walked off, leaving Lucas alone and confused.. not that he wasn't used to it.

-------

Nathan and Brooke sat silently, absorbed in their own thoughts. To say that Brooke was surprised when Nathan broke the silence would be an understatement.

"What were you going to tell me earlier?"

Her eyes widened. Like hell she was going to tell him now. He may be ready for this tragic news after a couple of months ... or years ... or never? "Oh, it was nothin." _Yeah... right._

"It must've been something." _Bingo._ "You called me over.. said it was important?"

Her mind was racing. What could she say to get him to drop it? "Um..." _Oh! Lightbulb! She was a fucking genius! _"Well Haley's birthday is coming up, and I was thinking maybe a surprise party? We don't have to worry about that now, though."

"You're a good friend, Brooke." he smiled and put an arm around her shoulder, pulling her closer.

Would a good friend be totally on the verge of an orgasm right about now? Okay, so maybe that was an exaggeration.. but, needless to say, Brooke enjoyed the feeling of Nathan's arms around her a little _too _much. "Thanks." she whispered, feeling more ashamed with each passing second.

They sat like that until Lucas and Peyton returned, but this time the silence was comfortible and welcomed.

Lucas stiffened at the sight of them. "Maybe we could go in and see Haley now?" he proposed, partly because he was genuinely concerned for his best friend.. and partly because the sight of Nathan and Brooke looking so comfortible in eachother's presence was making him nautious. Needless to say, Brooke did _not _tell Nathan about the abortion as she had promised to.

Nathan shrugged. He didn't want to further upset Haley, but hopefully she had calmed down a bit.

Lucas softly knocked on the door before entering. The rest followed, their heads hung low in sympathy. Haley stared out the window with cloudy eyes. She refused to acknowledge their presence as they slowly surrounded her hospital bed. Finally, she looked up at Nathan. He could tell that she wasn't happy with him, for she had made her wishes clear. She had wanted to be left alone, and he had seemingly paraded in with half the town.

"Hey buddy." Lucas said, sensing the tension and hoping to serve as some sort of a distraction.

"Hi." she replied weakly, and the extent of her devastation was suddenly clear.

"We're here for you." He said gently before bending down to softly kiss her forehead.

She nodded and revealed the slightest trace of a smile- a major breakthrough, given the circumstances.

Nathan was happy to see that she was warming to their presence, but discouraged at the same time.. for it was all Lucas. When he had tried to comfort her, she had asked him to leave. Nathan may be able to kick his brother's ass on the court, but Lucas Scott had a way with words that Nathan could never even hope to acquire.

_A Kodak moment if there ever was one..._ Brooke observed the exchange between the two best friends, regretfully realizing that, following the most painful loss in her life, the most comfort she had ever received had been from a bar of chocolate and a fashion magazine. But was she bitter? _Well... maybe a little bit._

"Thanks guys, I appreciate it.." Haley said, tucking her auburn colored hair behind her ears. "But I'd actually really like to be alone right now.. I hope that's okay."

"Hey, whatever you want." Lucas replied, refusing to abandon his position as the supportive _best _friend. "And if you need someone to talk to?"

"You'll be the one I come to." she finished, failing to notice her husband visibly stiffen at this. "Thanks for everything." she turned to the rest of them, who had remained mute for the entire exchange. "All of you.. I'm so lucky to have such great friends."

"We love you, Haley James." Peyton said, ruffling her friend's hair. Peyton had never been good with grief. _No... really?_

_'Haley James-Scott.' _Nathan inwardly corrected. As the rest of them filed out of the room, he remained stubbornly in place.

"Nathan..." she pleaded.

"No." he replied, gently but firmly. "We can get through this together; you just need to let me in.."

"I need to deal with this in my own way, Nathan." she said softly, refusing to make eye contact. "Please just go." Her last sentence was barely audible, but he heard her.. loud and clear.

"I know this is killing you, Haley.. but you're not the only one." he painfully reminded her before complying.

And once her wish had been granted, Haley James (or was it Haley James-Scott?) cried. It wasn't simply a lone tear trailing down her face, either. This was uncontrollable, frantic sobbing that wasn't subsiding anytime soon. Because not only had she lost her child, she was gradually losing her husband as well. And she had no one to blame for that but herself.

-------

Nathan awoke to the sound of his mother rummaging through the kitchen. The clatter of pots and pans served as an unconvention, yet effective alarm clock. Of course, had he been in his bedroom, he would still be sound asleep. But Haley had requested space, and that had apparently applied to sleeping arragnements as well. Consequently, Nathan's current bed was the living room couch and, over the past week, he had regretfully discovered that his mother seemingly suffered from insomnia.

"_Mom.._" he groaned, unsuccessfully concealing his annoyance. "How the hell are you functioning at 8:00 in the morning? It's a _Saturday_."

"Nathan!" Deb Scott visibly brightened as her son lowered himself onto a kitchen stool. Most mothers would disapprove of the foul language, but Nathan could literally recite the urban dictionary, and she would still be the proudest mother alive. "How did you sleep?" He somehow managed to display all of his irritation with one brief look. She cleared her throat. "Would you like me to fix you some breakfast?"

He shrugged. As if on cue, his stomach growled.

"I'll take that as a yes." Deb replied with a smile as she pushed a plate of eggs in front of him. "You can start with that."

"That was fast." Nathan replied, shoveling a spoonful into his mouth.

"They're fresh, don't worry." she replied. "I actually made them for Haley. She hasn't been eating well, and I thought that breakfast in bed might cheer her up."

_Yeah.. as if scrambled eggs and toast would make her forget that she had just lost a child...?_

"Anyway.." she continued, retrieving the pancake mix from the pantry. Nathan had always been a big eater.. "She wasn't in her room."

Nathan stopped chewing and swallowed. _Hard._ "Are you sure?"

Deb nodded. "I found it odd. That girl hasn't left that room since we brought her home from the hospital."

Nathan immediately got up and left the kitchen. "Haley?!" he shouted as he practically sprinted toward the bedroom. Ignoring her "space" rule, he threw the door open to find ... an empty bedroom. On the pillow, in place of her head and her beautiful auburn-colored hair, was a note and, upon closer look, her wedding band. He picked up the ring and examined it closely before setting it aside and tearing open the note.

_Nathan,_

_I once thought our love could outlast anything, but now it has really been put to the test. Throughout my eighteen years of existence, I have only had two passions: you and music. Now I can't even look at you without wondering what our child would've looked like.. Would he have had your eyes? Your smile? Your ability to play basketball? It haunts me, Nathan. The only way I can even think to cope with this is to start singing again. I'm going back on tour, and I can't ask for you to wait for me. If you want a divorce, I'll give it to you.. because I honestly don't know how long I'll be this time. Rest assured that this decision was not the result of an ongoing infatuation with Chris Kellar. You are and always will be the love of my life._

_Always and Forever,_

_Haley_

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**Review!!! **_...please?_


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: As always, I don't own anything.

Author's Note: I love you all! Thanks so much for the amazing feedback last chapter! I tried to get this out as soon as I could, but that was not easy to do. Of course, college is a top priority and it demands almost all of my spare time. To make up for the delay, I tried to make this chapter as long as I could. I hope you all enjoy! And of course, though I sometimes don't deserve it, don't forget to review:)

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Brooke loved Saturday mornings. Well.. technically, she didn't know what they felt like; she was always sleeping. On this particular morning, however, her dreams were disrupted by a loud knock on the door. "Fuck off." she murmured, burying her head deeper into her pillow. Finally, she threw the covers aside, fully prepared to appropriately greet the incessant surprise visitor. She swung the door open, her scowl already in place.

Lucas Scott grimaced at the sight of the pissed-off cheerleader that stood before him. She wore flannel pajama pants and an oversized T-shirt. Her brown hair was greasy and disheveled, and her face was devoid of any makeup. Still, he wouldn't hesitate to call her his "pretty girl" if given the permission.

"Why am I not surprised?"

It was true, his visits had become somewhat commonplace, but this was important..

"What is it, like, eight o'clock?" she glanced down at her bare wrist.

"It's ten forty-five." he corrected.

"I don't function prior to noon on Saturdays." she informed him. "Thanks for stopping by." she then proceeded to shut the door in his face, but he wouldn't allow it.

"We need to talk.." he replied, pleading with her.

"No.." she shook her head, for she could see his 'I'm sorry about Peyton, lets give it another try' speech coming from a mile away. "I don't _need _to talk to you. All I need is food, water, and _sleep_.. so if you don't mind-"

"Haley left Nathan."

It was very seldom that Brooke Davis was speechless. She stared at him for a moment before finally stepping aside, allowing him entrance to her apartment.

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An hour later, the duo was in Lucas' truck, traveling down the road at a steady speed.

"Can't you go any faster?" Brooke said urgently. "Nathan is Deb's son, you know. He could be popping pills as we speak."

Lucas gave her a stern look. "That's not funny.. and besides, you were the one who took forty-five minutes to get ready. If we find Nathan hanging from the ceiling tiles, it's on your shoulders."

She laughed incredulously. "Are you kidding? I did Nate a favor by getting ready. The sight of me alone would've killed him."

He smiled and rolled his eyes, for he had always enjoyed their playful banter. However, for some reason, he doubted his brother would appreciate it nearly as much. Brooke seemingly read his mind, and the two gradually returned to their sullen state.

"Remember the first time Haley left Nathan to go on tour?" Brooke said softly.

"How could I forget?" Lucas replied as they approached the house. "Judging by that experience, we should expect to find a passed-out Nathan surrounded by empty beer bottles and pizza boxes."

Brooke raised an eyebrow. "Or a definitely not passed-out, seemingly sober Nathan shooting hoops?"

"What the hell..?" Lucas was equally confused as he slowed the car to a stop. The two got out of the truck and approached their friend with caution.

"Hey Nate.." Brooke said, her voice lacking its usual perkiness.

"Hey." he replied, denying them eye contact as he scored another 3-pointer with ease.

"Are you okay?" Lucas said slowly, unsure of how to react to Nathan's strange behavior.

"Yup." Again, he refused to truly acknowledge their presence.

"It's just.. we were expecting.." Lucas started, and Nathan finally turned to them.

"What?"

"Well, I mean last time.. you were.."

"Drinking yourself to oblivion?" Brooke offered. Clearly, Lucas had been struggling with his words, and she had never been shy.

"Yeah, well despite how much fun that was, I decided to invest my time in something a little more worthwhile."

"What do you mean?" Lucas asked, eyeing the basketball that Nathan had been dribbling expertly throughout the entire conversation.

"Unlike marriage, I'm going to focus on something I have a future in." He stopped dribbling and effortlessly sunk another basket for emphasis. "Basketball." _As if they didn't already know..._

"What are you talking about?" Lucas demanded. "You and Haley are still married."

"Not for long." Nathan's face lacked any emotion whatsoever.

"You're getting divorced?" Despite her recent infatuation with Nathan, Brooke was still both amazed and appalled at this. Naley was the equivalent of all her favorite TV couples. As sappy as it may sound, they were the fairytale couple that gave everyone else hope.

"Actually, Dan thinks he can land us an annulment." Nathan replied.

"_Land you_ an annulment?" Lucas repeated. His brother spoke of the disintegration of his marriage as he would a one-night stand with the popular girl at a party.

Nathan shrugged in reply. "You know what I mean. This way, Haley wont have to come home from the tour. No court. No lawyers. It's just easier, man." With that, Nathan turned his attention back to basketball while Lucas and Brooke exchanged worried looks.

-------

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Larry Sawyer spoke his words sporadically as the weight of his daughter's luggage consumed most of his effort. "What about Lucas and Brooke? Did you tell them you were leaving?"

Peyton's blonde spirals flew freely as she shook her head forcefully. "No dad, I told you.. I don't have anything left for me in Tree Hill."

He frowned. His daughter had always had a best friend and a boyfriend, or at least one of the two. She seemed so unhappy now, which was the only reason he was even allowing this mini-vacation. "Are you sure you can miss a couple days of school? Graduation's coming up.."

"I'm sure." she replied. Her dad was scarcely around, but when he was, he was the most paranoid, overprotective person _ever._ "It's not that long.. I'll be back on Tuesday. And if things go well.." she smiled at the thought.

"You'll be back on Tuesday." he finished for her. "Honey, you know I wouldn't allow this if it was any boy other than Jake.."

"I know." she replied, softly. "It took me a while to figure out what I wanted, but now that I did? I think I can finally be happy."

"That's all I've ever wanted for you." he told her before dropping the luggage and enveloping her in a hug. "Even if it's because of some boy other than your daddy."

Peyton laughed in spite of herself. "Dude, that was wrong on so many levels."

"Dude, I'm a father," Larry replied, mocking Peyton's language the best he could. "Horrifying their children is part of the job description." Peyton laughed at this, and he finally released her from his arms. "Now go."

"Thanks daddy." With her big, blue eyes and her golden curls, Peyton triggered all sorts of flashbacks to the eight-year-old girl that had existed prior to the discovery of the opposite sex. When it came to relationships, however, she had made so many bad decisions in the past.. but she was completely in love with Jake and from what she remembered, he had been pretty infatuated with her, too. Though some might claim that she was simply on the rebound from Lucas, Peyton knew that this was not the case. Hence, this surprise visit was the best idea she had had in... well... _ever. _She was confident that Jake would take her back and that the three of them could finally be a family. _Finally..._

-------

"At least angry, alcoholic Nathan had a _soul_." Lucas ranted on. He was driving Brooke back to her apartment, and she had yet to get a word in. "And an annulment? How could he even-"

"Come on, now," Brooke intervened. "You can't blame him for that. This is the second time she's left him to go on tour. And what do you expect him to do? Sit around and wait for her?"

"Says the girl who would do anything to get in his pants again." he replied, but instantly regretted it.

"What did you say to me?" she said through gritted teeth. Her eyes burned holes into his as he desperately tried to recover, spitting out one incoherent sentence after another.

"Stop the car."

"Come on, Brooke.. you know I didn't-"

"Stop the fucking car!" she repeated in a tone that scared him into obedience. Wordlessly, she stepped out, slamming the door behind her. She started walking. The way she stomped her feet with each step made her infuriation evident.

He gulped, then rolled down the window. He accelerated to just over a snail's pace while begging her to get back in. Of course, she ignored him. "I didn't mean it." he insisted. "With everything that's been going on lately, can't you just give me a break?"

She slowed her pace, seemingly considering his plead.

"Just this once?"

He really did seem sorry.. Even so, Brooke hated that, despite everything he had put her through, Lucas Scott still had an affect on her. "If these weren't my favorite pair of heels..."

He leaned over to open the door for her. Hesitantly, she got back in.

"I'm sorry." He said genuinely. "You know I didn't mean it."

"Just drive." she commanded, and he did not hesitate to comply.

-------

Peyton sat in the cab, watching the scenery as it continuously altered. The plane ride had been decent, but the thought of seeing Jake again had done nothing for her patience. She couldn't wait to see his reaction to her surprise visit. After all, the last time he had seen her she had been off to rekindle her romance with Lucas. Though things were completely different now, Jake had always been the constant in her life. No matter what, he and Jenny were always just a plane ride away. She found her way back to him.. She always did.

After what seemed like a lifetime, the cab finally slowed to a stop. She paid the driver and collected her luggage. She was now right outside of Jake's apartment building. She hadn't seen him in nearly a year, and now he was just a flight of stairs away. She stood on the sidewalk for a minute while she dug through her purse for a compact. She wasn't normally the type to obsess over her appearance, but Jake, she found, was the exception to every rule. Once she was finally satisfied, she proceeded to walk up the stairway. With each step, another question arose and she found herself becoming increasingly worried. _Would Jake take her back? Would Jenny remember her? Most importantly- Did Jake still love her? _

Once she reached his door, she contemplated leaving. Seeing as how Lucas had kicked her ass to the curb, would he suspect she was simply settling for him? Could she just walk back into his life expecting him to take her back?She'd done it before, but was it possible that she had had her last chance with Jake Jagielski? Shrugging away all second thoughts, Peyton boldly knocked on the door. It seemed like an eternity before it finally swung open. And when it did, her face fell.

Standing before her was, quite possibly, the most gorgeous girl she had ever seen in her life. She had long, blonde hair- equivalent to an angel's- with soft curls, as opposed to Peyton's unruly ringlets. Her big, blue eyes gave even Peyton's a run for their money. The only aspect that Peyton matched up to, she decided, was her figure. Although, this mystery woman did have a Brooke-sized chest to go along with her slender frame.. _Implants? _God, she hoped so. The woman wore a simple tank top and capris, so simple and yet so elegant. Peyton was growing more inferior by the second in her oversized leather jacket and worn jeans. The woman looked confused, but smiled at her nonetheless. Of course, she had a set of beautiful, white teeth to match her already perfect ensemble. "Hi...?" she said, as more of a question than anything else.

That one word awoke Peyton from her trance, and she finally registered what had happened. Clearly, Jake did not live there anymore. She had come all this way and now had no fucking clue where to find him... _Perfect. _"I'm sorry," she began, forcing a smile despite her disappointment. "I must have the wrong place.. I was looking for Jake Jagielski."

The woman raised an eyebrow at this. "Jake's here. I'll get him."

As the woman turned away, Peyton allowed a horrified expression to creep onto her face. _If Jake still lived there.. then why was this woman- who, by the way, just so happened to be a knockout- answering his door? _She didn't have much time to speculate as she soon heard footsteps growing nearer. _"Jake..." _she whispered, taking the proceeding seconds to make some final adjustments to her appearance and stance. As he came into view, she couldn't help but smile. He was holding a now nearly four-year-old Jenny with that love and affection she had always admired. That same woman walked behind him, curiosity evident in her features.

His eyes widened as he registered her presence. He then carefully handed Jenny to, well.. whoever the hell that girl was before hurrying to appropriately greet his surprise visitor.

"Peyton!" he exclaimed, wrapping his arms around her skeletal frame. She noted just how good it felt to be in his arms again. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the blonde bitch giving her that trademark death glare she had grown so accustomed to. After all, she _had_ dated _both_ Scott brothers.

Well, that settled it. Blonde bitch was Jake's girlfriend and Peyton was, once again, the other woman.

_Well there's something original..._

-------

Brooke flipped through the channels continuously. However, all that was on at this time of day was soap operas and talk shows. Finally, she settled on the food network. She watched as Rachael Ray chopped up vegetables with ease- the smile on her face refused to alter.

Brooke shook her head. How did she do it? Hadn't no one ever told her that life sucked? All the 30 Minute Meals in the world wouldn't save you from sex tapes, alienation, and an ass of an ex-boyfriend who claims to still be in love with you. _Okay.. so maybe that was just her life?_

She got up to retrieve a pint of ice cream from the freezer. _30 Second Meals with Brooke Davis.. It had a ring to it._

She had just settled back on the couch when there was a knock at the door. She sighed and flipped off the TV before getting up to open it. Well.. she hadn't seen Lucas in nearly an hour.. Of _course_ it was him. "You already apologized, Lucas." she said, placing her hands on her hips in agitation. "And I already told you to save your begging for bedroom talk with Peyton."

He sighed. "That's not why I'm here."

She raised an eyebrow and motioned for him to continue.

"I'm going to get Haley."

"What?"

"Nathan needs her."

She shook her head and pulled him inside, closing the door behind him. "You're going about this all wrong, Luke.." she started. "All Nathan needs is some time and space. He's finally focusing on his passion again.. Trust me, he'll be okay."

"No." he replied, sternly. "_Haley _is his passion, and I could never forgive myself if my best friend and my brother were miserable for the rest of their lives and I did nothing to prevent it."

She sighed. "At least wait until the summer.. Graduation's coming up soon, and these next few weeks are crucial."

He shook his head. "If Dan gets his way, their marriage will be over by the end of next week. I need to go now."

She slowly nodded. Though it killed her to admit it, Lucas probably was doing the right thing. "I can maybe email you some assignments.. so you're on track for graduation and all.."

He smiled. "Thank you." There was a short pause. "Could you do me just one more favor?"

Though part of her was tempted to say no, she nodded in spite of herself.

"Take care of Nathan."

She adamantly shook her head. "No, Luke.. He needs space.."

"Please?" he said, softly. "He's my brother.. I don't want to see him ruin his life."

She sighed. His sincerity killed her. "Okay." she relented. "Fine, I'll keep an eye on him."

"Thanks." He bent down to hug her. "Pretty girl." he whispered so softly it was barely audible. She, however, heard him loud and clear. Finally, they broke away from each other. She slowly waved as he retreated to his car.

"Drive safe!" she called after him before realizing just how lame she sounded. She closed the door and stood for a moment, unsure of what to do next.

And then she remembered her ice cream...

-------

Peyton was walking slowly down the sidewalk alongside of Jake, who had referred to her as "an old friend" when he had requested permission to go on a walk with her. Megan, Peyton learned was the name of the mystery girl, had hesitantly agreed. And since she was the one who had shown up unannounced, Peyton knew it was her duty to break the ice.

"So, um.. Is she your..?"

"Yeah." he cleared his throat. "Well.. Yeah, she is."

Though she had previously suspected this, his confirmation hurt ... badly. "How long?"

Tiny creases formed in his forehead as he considered this. If possible, he was even more adorable than she remembered, although all of his notable features seemed to be the same- his toned body, his handsome face that could seriously be featured in an aftershave commercial, and his eyes... _God, she loved his eyes. _"Ten months or so, I guess.. Give or take." he finally responded, breaking her from her trance.

"So, basically the minute after I left?" She hated that the hurt was distinguishable in her voice, and she tried her best to conceal it ... but to no avail.

"I don't know what to say.." he slowed his pace and turned toward her. She could tell that he truly was sorry, as he had always been sincere. "It's just.. you left to be with Lucas, and I didn't know if you were ever coming back."

She nodded. She couldn't honestly blame him for moving on so quickly. It just hurt like hell that he would even consider it after making so many promises to _her, Peyton._ He had agreed to marry her.. _Right, 24 hours before she left him to be with one of his best friends. _And once again, she was the bitch.

"Well, she's beautiful." she said, striving to be the better person. "I'm happy for you."

"Thanks." he replied. "Hey, and last I heard, you and Lucas were-"

"We broke up." she said abruptly. "I mean, he broke up with me.." she shook her head, for she had just labeled herself as the brokenhearted girl on the rebound. Any chance of her and Jake ever reuniting had just been shot to hell.

"Well, then he's an idiot." he replied. "If you loved me the way you loved him? I would've married you." This statement surprised the both of them, and Jake seemed to instantly regret vocalizing this thought. "But, uh.. I guess it just wasn't in the cards for us.." he covered before opting for silence.

Peyton's mouth hung open for a second. How she wished she could've declared her love for him right then and there..

If only he didn't have a girlfriend...

_Since when had that ever stopped her?_

-------

True to her word, Brooke showed up at the Scott estate later in the evening to check on Nathan. He was shooting hoops again. _Or had he ever stopped? _Following an impressive three-pointer, the ball rolled off the court in her direction. She bent down to pick it up. He waited expectantly for her to return it to him, but she never did. Instead, she carried it over to the front step, where she sat down and patiently waited for him to join her. He eventually did.

"I'm sorry, Nathan ... about Haley, and.. and about the baby.." Little did he know, her words had more than one meaning. "I don't even know what to say to you. I guess I'm not so good at the whole comforting thing, huh? Sorry." she smiled at him sadly.

"Well, you're better than Lucas.. If he were here, he'd probably be quoting from some dead poet.. God, I hate that." Brooke smiled at this. He wasn't the only one.. "Speaking of.." Nathan continued. "Where is my intuitive, in-touch-with-his-feelings, fruit of a brother?"

Brooke laughed. "I'll agree with everything but the fruit part.. I guess you'd kind of have to sleep with him to understand.." she winked at him, and he grimaced in response. She laughed again. "He's going to be gone for.. a little while.."

"Where'd he go?"

Brooke sighed. She couldn't lie to him. She could, however, withhold the truth if never specifically asked, 'Did you abort my baby?' But she certainly couldn't lie to him.. "He went to see Haley." she said softly.

Nathan shook his head, anger evident in his features. "That is just like him.. To get involved with something that's none of his business.."

Brooke nodded. She couldn't honestly disagree with that. "I know, Nate.. He's trying to do the right thing, though. He cares so much about you and Haley.."

"It doesn't matter.. She's not coming back anyway." He stared at the ground as he said this. It was as if he was admitting this for the very first time- to her and to himself.

"You don't know that.." Brooke replied, she didn't know how to respond. She had never seen him this way.

"Yes, I do." He ran a hand through his hair before looking up at her. The intensity in his eyes scared her a bit. "She hasn't called me since she left.. not once. She didn't leave anything behind. Not anything that mattered to her, anyway. She doesn't miss me anymore, Brooke. She doesn't need me."

"Nathan.." she started, but he cut her off almost immediately.

"And you know what? I don't need her anymore, either. She has her passion, and I have mine." He took the basketball from her hands and sunk a shot from where he stood for emphasis. He then returned to his fast-paced, self-authorized, never-ending drill.

She sat and watched him for what seemed like forever, and never before had she seen such passion. If he was half as committed to being a good husband as he was to basketball, then Haley was formerly the luckiest girl in the world and presently the stupidest.

As she watched him, another question arose. How could such a great guy (dismissing the fact that he was formerly not-such-a-great-guy) be so unfortunate?

_Nathan Scott: Has extremely powerful and, quite possibly genetic, semen, but is apparently fated never to be a father, though this is no fault of his own._

_or_

_Nathan Scott: Always sleeps with the selfish bitches who are destined to either abort his child without his knowing or leave him to be a part of a tour as the opening act of an arrogant asshole who whole-heartedly believes he is God's gift to women.. twice. His poor fate has been determined by his impeccable judgment. It's his fault._

_Stay tuned to find out..._

-------

_Review ... Please?!_


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: I don't own anything.

Author's Note: As always, I would like to thank you all for the reviews and apologize for the delay. I know that some of you are getting impatient and want Brooke to tell Nathan about the baby--I promise that the truth will be out soon enough! I wanted to get this out as soon as I could, so I apologize in advance for any errors.. Please don't forget to review! I love reading your reactions and/or suggestions. It all makes my day, it really does. Thanks much! On with the story..

-------

Brooke sighed as she returned yet another outfit to the sales rack. Even the cutest pair of stilettos, she found, were irrelevant when they couldn't fill the void inside of her - the one she had been feeling for quite some time now. And what good was shopping without a companion? Haley was off on tour with the biggest prick on the planet, and Peyton? In a moment of desperation, Brooke had texted her only to find out that she was already shopping - grocery shopping, that is, with Jake and Jenny! For the girl who had professed her never-ending love to someone else, she sure as hell had moved on fast!

She sifted through the scarves, desperate to make a purchase. She had been shopping for the past two hours, but had yet to buy a thing. Normally, she'd max out her credit card at the lingerie store, but seeing as how she hadn't had sex in months, she didn't really see the point. Growing frustrated, she planted her hands on her hips and sighed in agitation. Why was she failing miserably at the one thing she was actually good at? Even today, she wasn't dressed to perfection like she usually was. A wife beater, jean Capri's, and no accessories topped off a very lazy look. _Except that wasn't exactly what she was going for..._ On most days, though, it took her at least an hour to get ready, but what was the point of perfecting her hair and makeup and slipping on those tight designer jeans that accentuated her ass if there was no one to truly appreciate it?

Lucas had always noticed and complimented her on her appearance. Of course, he rarely did that now that they were no longer together. After all, there were certain boundaries that friends just didn't cross. Not only that, but Brooke missed the way he used to look at her - as if she were the only girl in the room, the only one deserving of his attention, anyway. Despite this, Brooke did _not _miss Lucas. She was very adamant about that. She missed certain aspects of him, she figured, but not the package deal. Ultimately, she was better off without him. _And if she kept telling herself that, maybe one day she would believe it..._

Her thoughts were soon interrupted by a familiar tune. Retrieving her cell phone from her purse, she glanced at the caller ID and answered it accordingly.

"Hey whore."

"Sup slut? Whatever you're doing.. or _whoever.._ can wait. I've got news."

"You're VD free?" Brooke guessed. Her and Rachel had an interesting relationship, to say the very least, and she enjoyed every moment of it.

"Amazingly, yes." Rachel replied.

"The only test you ever want to fail.. and you didn't have to steal the answer key or anything! Congratulations, my friend." Receiving some strange looks from the people around her, Brooke left the store and claimed an empty bench. "So what did you really want to tell me?"

"Well..." Rachel said slowly, hoping to gain some suspense. "I get to graduate!" she squealed.

"What?!" Brooke replied. "No fucking way!"

"True. There was no _fucking _way. Turner wouldn't go for that. I stand firmly by my theory that he's gay."

"Then how the hell did you manage that? Did you get some guy to do your dirty work?"

Rachel laughed. "No, I had my dad-" she stopped laughing. "Oh."

"So.." Brooke started, hoping to change the subject and rid herself of the horrifying image now implanted in her brain. How could something that was meant to be a joke come back to brutally bite her in the ass? "Are you coming home now?"

"_Hell_ no." Rachel replied. "Not 'till graduation. What's there to do in lame-ass North Carolina? I mean, I know that _you_ always found ways to keep yourself entertained, but neither of the Scott brothers were all that into me.."

"Oh God, don't remind me." And just when she was starting to forget about them.. _Yeah ... right._

"What now?" Rachel said in somewhat disbelief. "What more could have possibly happened in the land of drama?"

"You'd be surprised."

"At this point, nothing that happens in Tree Hill could possibly surprise me."

"Wanna bet?"

"Try me."

"Lucas broke up with Peyton right before professing his undying love to _me._ Peyton is now apparently with Jake and Jenny. Haley lost the baby and then joined Chris Keller on tour...again. Her and Nathan are getting an annulment. Lucas went after Haley to try to prevent this from happening and to bring her back for graduation. He asked me to watch after Nathan, who's now made out of stone and totally focused on basketball again, and we're basically the only ones left in Tree Hill." Following her recapping of events, Brooke took a deep breath and awaited her friend's reaction.

"Oh my God. How long have I been gone for?"

"Apparently 'Always and Forever' .. That's how long Nathan and Haley promised to be together for."

"Nicely done, Brooke Davis. Once again, you've shocked me to my very core.. You somehow managed to land both Scott brothers, and now this? Wow." she paused. "What about Mouth? Please tell me that he's not fucked up now, too."

"Mouth, right.." Brooke said, scanning her brain for an update on her friend and feeling slightly guilty for the lack of information. She really had been busy lately.. "Last I heard, he deflowered a clean teen, but I haven't really talked to him lately."

"Atta boy." Rachel replied. "I miss him.. Almost as much as I miss your fat ass."

"And I miss _your _surgically improved ass."

Rachel laughed. "Look, I've gotta go. My lounge chair awaits. But hey, try to keep things at least semi-normal until I get back."

"I can't make any promises, but I'll do my best."

"Bye bitch."

"Bye whore."

-------

"I love this song!" Peyton came as close to a squeal as her self-proclaimed badass nature would allow. She turned up the radio and yanked the binder from her hair, shaking it loose. She loved the way one good song could change her mood completely. She turned to Jake, who took his eyes briefly off the road to give her an amused glance. "I love this song." she repeated. She was sitting shotgun while Jenny was safely bucked in the backseat, surrounded by grocery bags that would not fit in the trunk.

"I'm thinkin' you'll be a fan of the entire CD." Jake replied, smiling at the free and happy girl beside him- the polar opposite from the one he had been reacquainted with the night before.

"What makes you so sure?" Peyton had always longed to be mysterious, although many had pegged her to be similar to the transparent, ditzy cheerleaders belonging to her tight group of friends.

"You gave it to me."

Peyton's spirits skyrocketed at this. Jake still owned and listened to a CD she had given him ages ago. Not only that, but Jake's girlfriend- _Megan, for those of you keeping score at home_- had only been visiting when Peyton had shown up- _unannounced, might I add? _- and did _not _live with him! Which made sense, Peyton realized. Jake wasn't the type of guy to randomly move in with a girl he was dating. He was really old-fashioned that way. She was sometimes frustrated by this, but ultimately respected and loved him for it. "Thank God you still have this." Peyton teased. "You were listening to country before I came along."

"I resent that." Jake replied. "Country music puts your sad old records to shame."

Peyton feigned disappointment and shook her head. "Country music is a disgrace, and you, my friend, would be lost without me."

"Whatever you say, Peyton." Jake laughed and turned up the radio. "I did that to tune you out, not because I enjoy it."

"Keep telling yourself that." she replied, playfully hitting him in the arm. It was then that Peyton realized that she didn't need to be the center of Jake's world. After all, Jenny had claimed that spot the day she was born. For now, Peyton was just happy talking to him- she really had missed that. If it was meant to be, the rest would come, but for now she was completely satisfied with bickering over music.

-------

Lucas stood in the long line, eavesdropping as the girls in front of him expressed their never-ending love and infatuation for ... Chris Keller? He stopped listening. Best friends since birth, and yet he had been reduced to just another star-struck fan. He had to hand it to Haley.. she really had done well for herself. The amount of people standing in the meet & greet line was seemingly infinite as he had yet to get a glimpse of her. However, apparently not everyone was there to see Haley. The pre-teens in front of him had helpfully emphasized this.

At a snail's pace, he advanced in line and eventually was standing right in front of his best friend. She appeared the same, but lacked the soon-to-be-mom glow that had looked so great on her. She still hadn't noticed him as she scribbled her first name on a 4x6 photo of herself. It wasn't until she handed it to him with a forced smile that she met his gaze.

"Hey stranger." he said, revealing a half-smile as she registered his presence.

"H-hey Luke.. what are you doing here?"

Okay, so she hadn't exactly leapt over the table and into his arms like he had anticipated- _and hoped for?_- but he could understand that he had caught her off-guard. "Well... the guy you opened for is a total fox." he joked. She laughed and playfully rolled her eyes at this. "To see you, of course."

There were a few subtle grunts and impatient sighs. He was holding up the line, and the people behind him never failed to serve as a reminder.

Haley noticed this as well. "Wait for me in my dressing room?"

"I would be happy to." This voice belonged to none other than Chris Keller, reinstating the fact that some people never change. The musical genius slash pervert then turned his attention to Lucas. "Come to get Chris Keller's autograph?" He then looked around the room. "Did Brooke.. or Peyton.. or whoever the hell you're dating now come with you?"

Lucas shook his head. He was not amused. "Nope. Guess you'll have to harass some other poor, helpless girl."

"Helpless??!" Chris replied incredulously. "Have you _met _Brooke and Peyton? I still have bruises from my time in Tree Hill." he paused. "It was kinda hot."

Lucas chose to ignore this last statement as he turned his attention back to Haley. "How do I get back to your dressing room without being attacked by security and pegged as a creepy stalker?"

She laughed. "I'll take care of it." she turned to the security guard behind her and their brief exchange was enough to get Lucas back into the dressing room, where he sat for over an hour patiently waiting for the meet & greet to finish. Finally, the door opened and Haley walked in, noticeably exhausted, and plopped down on the nearest chair.

Lucas gave her a sad smile. "How you holdin' up?"

"I'm fine, but this tour schedule's enough to wear anyone out, ya know?"

Lucas nodded in response. He was talking about the baby, and he was sure that she knew that. They were best friends, after all- the kind that could read the other's mind and finish each other's sentences- she had to have caught on. Clearly, though, she wasn't ready to talk about it, and he wasn't going to push her. "So.. graduation's coming up-" he began, but the look on Haley's face stopped him mid-sentence.

"So that's the reason you came..? To convince me to come home?" she pulled her auburn-colored hair into a ponytail and awaited his response.

"Of course I want you to come home, Hales." he replied. "But it's not just me.. Nathan is a mess-"

"Nathan?" Haley cut him off, the concern evident in her voice. "Is he back into drinking?"

"Well.." Lucas started. "No, but-"

"Random hookups?"

Her voice was tiny, and he knew it killed her to even say the words. He was quick to assure her that this was not the case.

"Then what? What's wrong with him? Why is he a mess?"

Lucas sighed. Haley was clearly confused. "Well.. he does nothing but play basketball. It's like he's made of stone now or something.. It's hard to explain, but he needs you."

"Hold on." Haley said softly. "Nathan's focusing on something good for him that he loves? Sounds like he's doing pretty good to me.."

Lucas sighed. Needless to say, he was not succeeding at getting his point across. "You can't get an annulment, Hales.."

"Look," she said softly. "Even if I wanted to come home, there's no way that Nathan would ever forgive me."

"You know that's not true..."

"We both need to move on. It just wasn't meant to be."

-------

Nathan was restlessly shooting hoops when Brooke approached. She sat down on the steps and waited patiently for him to join her, which he did. She handed him the bottle of water she had picked up at the convenient store on her way over, which he gratefully accepted. Over the past few days, the two had fallen into somewhat of a routine. At the end of each day, Brooke would head over to Nathan's and interrupt his endless basketball drill. She would fix dinner, which would usually consist of ordering take-out, while he showered, and the two would fall asleep to whatever sappy movie Brooke would select. Nathan didn't know why she came, but chose not to question it. His mom was scarcely around anymore as she was always busy attending AA meetings or working overtime at Karen's cafe and Tric. Haley, of course, had left to go on tour, leaving Lucas to chase after her, much to Nathan's annoyance, and God only knew where the rest of his friends were. Though he would deny it if asked, he definitely needed the company.

"Come on." Brooke said softly, and the duo headed inside.

An hour later, they were sprawled across the couch surrounded by empty Chinese food boxes. "A Walk to Remember" was playing in the background, but neither was focused on the TV.

"C'mon, I told you mine!" Nathan insisted. "It's only fair.."

Brooke laughed and shook her head stubbornly. "The backseat of a car is hardly a confession, let a lone a juicy one.."

"What can I say? I'm a conventional guy."

She raised an eyebrow at this. "A conventional guy with a collection of sex tapes?"

"Don't even try to change the subject."

She feigned contemplation before letting out an exaggerated sigh. "Fine." She smiled when Nathan leaned forward in anticipation. The two were exchanging their most exciting sex stories, and she had one, she suspected, that would literally floor him. "Ya know how they say 'absence makes the heart grow fonder?'" she asked. He nodded in response. "Well.. the same works for ... other body parts.." she continued, lacking a better explanation. "Your brother had been away for a week touring colleges, and you can only have so much fun with yourself.. so when he got back.."

"Stop! Stop! Stop!" Nathan pleaded. She smiled at his horrified expression. "You're a sick woman! From now on, keep your Lucas horror stories to yourself? Please?"

She threw her head back and laughed. Hard. Nathan laughed, too, in spite of himself, and realized that he hadn't laughed this hard since before Haley had left.. since before she had miscarried.. since before the revelation of the sex tape.. since ... _ever???_

Sometime later when they had finally stopped laughing, it occurred to Brooke that the story she had intended on sharing- that time with Lucas- while amazing, was not the most fun she had ever had with someone. Though she couldn't remember every detail, her fondest memory between the sheets had been shared with the man lying next to her, who was still recovering from the recent excitement.

_"I might kiss you."_

_"I might be bad at it."_

_"That's not possible."_

Brooke sighed and turned her attention to the TV. "We should probably watch the movie.."

"Why?" Nathan replied, stubbornly choosing to watch Brooke instead.

"Because." She replied softly, locking eyes with him. "We've both been screwed over so many times.. but this might just restore our faith."

"In what?"

"Love."

Hesitantly, she rested her head on his shoulder while he dutifully turned to watch, tuning in just in time to see Landon profess his love to Jamie. Despite the fact that he was a guy, he just may have been genuinely touched had he not seen this movie multiple times. After all, it was one of the most popular chick flicks around, and his former self had gotten laid so many times after agreeing to watch it.

_Point of the story?_

The chick dies, reinforcing Nathan's theory that true love always ends with cancer.. or miscarriage.. or tours. Ultimately, someone was bound to get fucked over, and 99 of the time it was him.

"Awwww."

He glanced at the girl resting on his shoulder who, of course, was loving every moment of it. For the first time, he realized that maybe true love wasn't about having an intense emotional connection- or whatever the hell he thought he had experienced with Haley. Maybe it was more about having fun- the kind of fun he and Brooke had every time they were together. Maybe all he needed was someone who could make him laugh- the way Brooke had made him laugh just moments ago. Of course, the ridiculously good sex didn't hurt anything, either. As if on cue, Brooke looked up at him. She smiled softly, revealing those adorable dimples that made everyone melt. Unable to stop himself, Nathan leant down and kissed her- softly at first, but then more passionately.. Brooke was slow to respond or even register what was happening. Eventually, though, she reacted to his bold action and demonstrated why she was the girl that every guy longed to be with.

Most of the time, Brooke found, real life was devalued by high expectations ... but no daydream or scenario she ever concocted could do this moment the slightest bit of justice.

She smiled when he scooped her into his arms, not once even suggesting to break their ongoing kiss. _Apparently, air was not a top priority... _She registered that they were headed toward his bedroom and wrapped her arms tighter around his neck. And, minus the alcohol, the video camera, and their former superficial selves, history repeated itself.

-------

Peyton swirled the noodles continuously around her fork. Jake had fixed spaghetti for dinner and she, lacking every cooking skill ever attainable, had watched. Peyton would attribute her limited knowledge in this area to growing up without a mom to cook for her. Her dad would prepare TV Dinners and Kraft Macaroni & Cheese and she, somehow, would remain almost sickly skinny. _Story of her life._

"This is amazing." she enthused, shoveling another forkful into her mouth.

"Yeah?" he smiled. "Well lately I've had to adopt the mother _and _the father responsibilities."

"Is Megan not much of a cook or..?" she trailed off. Though it pained her to talk about his girlfriend, she made a point to bring her up every now and then. After all, she was trying to be supportive. _Turning over a new leaf, are we?_

"Sometimes she and Ben will come over, but it's mostly just me and Jenny." he replied. "And I'm normally the one to cook." he added, realizing that he hadn't exactly answered her question.

"Whoa, wait.. Ben?" Peyton tucked a perfect blonde spiral behind her ear and leaned forward. She and Jake sat across from each other at the small, square table. Jenny, having had already finished her meal, was in the other room watching TV.

"Her son. She's a single mom."

"What?!"

As if Peyton weren't already discouraged by Megan's angelic presence, it now seemed as though she was perfect for him in every imaginable aspect. They both were single parents and, if they were to join forces, they would totally have that perfect suburban family going on- one boy one girl? It killed her to even think about it.

"Yeah." he confirmed. "I met her at Jenny's school, actually. Ben's in her class."

"Oh." Peyton knew that she should smile and gush about the good fortune.. perhaps ask for some details? However, this proved to be a difficult task. In fact, opening her mouth without projectile vomiting looked to be near impossible about now..

"I'm really glad you came, Peyton."

"Me too." she replied, meeting his glance, though she wasn't so sure this was true. She could definitely do without the knowledge that he was so happy with his new girlfriend ... and her son. Maybe she shouldn't have come? Maybe she would've been better off had she simply stayed home and held onto the fantasy that Jake was still sexy and single ... _and would forever wait for her?_

-------

Brooke lay awake in Nathan's bed.. entangled in his arms. She could feel his steady breathing on her neck as he slept. Though she tried, she couldn't fall asleep. Maybe it was the guilt of sleeping with her best friend's husband? After all, they were still technically married.. Maybe it was the fact that she was still harboring this huge secret- one that would change everything if she ever worked up the courage to tell him. Or maybe it was because, at this very moment, she was so ridiculously happy that she feared to close her eyes and miss even one second of it. _The latter?_

As if on cue, her phone went off. Although she was extremely annoyed, she hurried to answer it. She wouldn't want Nathan to wake up.. _and perhaps realize he'd made a huge mistake?_

She grabbed a sheet that had fallen to the floor during their tryst and wrapped it around herself before shuffling into the adjoining bathroom and closing the door behind her.

"Hello?"

"Hey crazy girl."

"Hey Luke." _Lucas _contacting _Brooke_?! Shocker. "Have you tracked down Haley yet?"

"Yeah." he replied. "I have."

"And..?"

"She's being stubborn.. but I have all the confidence in the world that I can convince her to come home."

Brooke laughed softly. "If nothing else, I have to give you points for your resilience." She was torn. Of course, she wanted her best friend back, but she would be lying if she said that she didn't want Nathan all for herself.. Though he wasn't hers to begin with, what happened tonight changed everything.. _Didn't it?_

"So how's my brother?"

Brooke opened the door slightly. She smiled when she saw him. He was still there. Maybe the past couple of hours hadn't been a dream? Maybe all of this was real? The thought was both amazing and terrifying at the same time.

"I think he's going to okay." she finally said. "I think we all will be."

-------

_Review, please!!:)_


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: I don't own anything.

Author's Note: So few reviews last chapter and yet my quickest update ever.. Trust me, there's no correlation there, I just really wanted to get this next chapter out.. Also, PinkyLover70, I appreciate your honesty. I'm sorry this story is "beyond the suckiest" one you've ever read. I never intended to use marriage as a "playful thing," _but_... newsflash- not all high school marriages last. Oh, and I know this story moves very quickly, but that's nothing different from what we see on the show or in other stories. I do appreciate constructive criticism, but your review wasn't as much constructive as it was mindless bashing of my story. Thanks to everyone else who reviewed! This one's for you guys! Love ya:)

------- 

"Brooke ... Wake up!"

Brooke mumbled something incoherent and opened her eyes to see Nathan hovering over her. "Five more minutes?" she requested, hugging her pillow tightly.

"Sorry, no can do." he replied, snatching the pillow from her grasp. She grunted when her head hit the mattress. "We're going to be late for school."

"I think we'll survive." Slowly, she rolled out of bed and made her way toward the bathroom. "Who needs calculus anyway?"

"Someone who needs to pass the final in order to graduate next week?" Nathan reminded her, buttoning up his shirt.

Brooke playfully stuck her tongue out at him before disappearing into the bathroom. She hopped into the shower, but left the door unlocked- just incase he felt like joining her.. _Down, girl. _Truth be told, Nathan was right. First period calculus should be her top priority as she was borderline failing the class, and a poor grade on the final would land her in summer school with a delayed diploma.

_"Hurry, Brooke!"_

She sighed. What the hell was Nathan in such a rush for anyway? It wasn't as if _his _graduation status was up in the air.. Nevertheless, she complied, and the two were on the road fifteen minutes later. Brooke was applying her eyeliner when Nathan vocalized her exact thoughts.

"So.. about last night.."

Brooke swallowed. _Hard._ Of course, she was expecting a lecture about how what they did was wrong and unfair to Haley and how it could never, _ever _happen again.

"I don't know how it happened ... but I'm glad it did."

Brooke's hand jolted, as she was completely shocked by this confession, and her thick, black eyeliner traveled the length of her face. "Wh-what did you say?" she turned to him, apparently unfazed by her current appearance.

"The annulment should be official soon." His eyes were fixated on the road as he continued. "So, when it is, maybe you and I could.."

"Nathan." she whispered. He turned to her, and for once she saw in his eyes the gleam that had once surfaced when he had looked at Haley.. The same one she had seen when Lucas had looked at her, or, God forbid, Peyton. She smiled. "Yes."

"Yes?" he repeated, as more of a question than anything else.

"Look, Nate.." she said softly, hoping that the words she was about to say wouldn't be enough to change his mind. "Haley's my best friend, and if I thought for one second she was coming back, I would stay away." She noticed him visibly stiffen at this. "But uh.. if all I am is a distraction, then maybe you should go after her.."

"No." he shook his head forcefully. "She walked out on me not once, but twice. And you.." his voice softened. "Are _not _a distraction. I want to be with you, Brooke."

Following this revelation, Brooke's smile refused to falter.. That is, until they pulled into the school parking lot. _If ever there was a mood killer.._

As she and Nathan regretfully parted and she headed off to Calculus ten minutes late, she got the feeling that her current elated state would not last long.

_The day would definitely be interesting, if nothing else.._

-------

Peyton sat in the front seat of Jake's car. She fiddled with the zipper of the carryon that rested on her lap. He was driving her to the airport, and she would return to Tree Hill, she realized, the same way she had departed: Alone? Still harboring unresolved feeling? Filled with desire, as well as regret? _um.. annoying as hell??!_ "Thanks again, Jake.. for everything." she said, overcoming her urge to tell him.

"It was great seeing you again, Peyton." he replied. "Are you sure you have to go so soon?"

"Yeah..." she said slowly. "Graduation's coming up, and supposedly these last couple weeks are kind of important, so..."

"Right, graduation.." he said. "I've been so busy lately.. with Jenny and work and everything.. that keeps getting pushed to the bottom of my to-do list."

Peyton nodded, wishing so fervently that she were on the top of that list. Again, she shook these thoughts. "Well, have you completed all your credits? It doesn't take much to get a diploma if you've met all the requirements."

"I've taken some courses online, but I really don't know what I have left to do.."

"You should look into it." she said sincerely. "You're way too smart not to have a high school diploma."

He smiled. "Thanks, Peyton.. You're a good friend."

Peyton's face fell at this, but she quickly concealed it by staring out the window. _Nothing kills the hope for a romantic relationship like being labeled as "a friend."_

"It's good that I'm leaving." she finally said. "I've gotta get back, and you have Jenny and.. and Megan." she smiled sadly. "Ya know, I always kind of thought you'd be back in Tree Hill one day, but now I can see that your life is here."

He didn't say anything, but simply stared silently at the road in front of him.

"You've done well for yourself." she went on. "I'm happy for you." Perhaps she was determined to prove that she actually was a good friend, but no matter the motive, she meant what she said.

"Yeah.. I'm a high school drop-out and a teenage father with a low-paying job. That just _screams _success."

"Hey.." she placed a hand on his arm reassuringly. "Don't say that.. You're the best dad I know. And the rest? That can be changed. I mean it, Jake. Get your diploma. You need to be the best you can be ... for Jenny."

He nodded. "You're absolutely right, Peyton. I'm going to graduate from high school." 

"That's awesome!" she smiled, happy to have stirred up some sort of passion in him.

"And after that? I'm going to take some college classes!"

"Yes! That's-"

"And maybe I can finally make a real commitment to Megan." 

Her smile faded just as quickly as it had appeared. _Yay?_

-------

Lucas and Haley sat in her hotel suite enjoying room service while an old movie played on TV. The two lay side-by-side on the king-size bed with an assortment of serving platters surrounding them. Lucas shoveled the last bit of ice cream into his mouth before setting the bowl aside. Groaning, he rolled over onto his back and held his stomach protectively.

"Hungry?" she joked and unsuccessfully attempted to feed him a few French fries.

"Actually, I don't think I'll ever be hungry again."

She laughed. "Sure, you say that now, but in a few hours you'll be making dinner arrangements."

He smiled and ran a hand through his hair, unintentionally revealing his deep, blue eyes. "Just think.. I would be in A.P. English about now.."

"Shut up." she replied, shoving him playfully. "You love English. And this little mission you're on to get me to come home? I'm telling you right now it's not going to work." He opened his mouth to speak, most likely to argue this, but she stopped him. "I don't want to be the reason why you miss out on learning about Hemingway and Fitzgerald and.." she paused upon realizing she knew surprisingly few famous authors. Lucas noticed and laughed at this. "And.. well.. whoever the hell else there is. You should go back, Luke. These last couple weeks are going to go by quickly. You need to enjoy them while they last."

"I will go back.." he noticed the look on her face as he said this, and quickly continued, not wanting to give her a false sense of relief. "..when you agree to come with me."

"Lucas-"

"It's just like you said.. it's gonna go by fast. We both need to cherish these last few weeks of.. well.. being a kid."

Haley shook her head sadly. "I've had to grow up so fast.. I don't even remember what being a kid feels like."

"All the more reason to come with me." he persisted.

"I don't want to be a kid, Luke. I wanted to _have_ a kid." Lucas nodded sympathetically, happy that his friend was finally opening up to him. "This is my life now. You should go."

Lucas shook his head, his sandy blonde hair fell into his eyes as he did so. "I'm not leaving you, Hales."

He sat up and wrapped his arms around her as she started to cry. It was the first trace of emotion she had shown since the miscarriage. "I know.." he whispered. She buried her head into his shoulder and grabbed fistfuls of his T-shirt. He pulled her closer. _"I know."_

-------

Jake and Peyton sat next to each other in the uncomfortable, plastic airport chairs. The two were talking, and it was clear that she was waiting until the last possible second to go through security. Sadly, her plane was set to depart soon and, if she had any intention of being on it, she would have to leave now.

He frowned as she stood up and slung her carryon across her shoulder. "Is it that time already?"

She nodded. _People always leave.. _It was strange, she realized, not being the one left behind. Although, technically he had left her behind a long time ago and she was just now returning the favor. "I'm gonna miss you, buddy." she said softly. She may have shed a tear had she not been so accustomed to this.

"Peyton.." he pulled her into a hug. "I'll miss you, too."

During their five second embrace, Peyton somewhat expected it to develop into something more. A goodbye kiss would, of course, be welcomed. However, when they pulled away, all he did was wish her a safe trip. Needless to say, this was far from a declaration of never-ending love. _Dramatic, much?_ She smiled sadly at him and offered a slight wave before turning around to leave. For a moment, she considered running back to tell him how she felt, but it seemed as though he was completely satisfied with his new life.

It wasn't until she was comfortably seated in coach- after all, her skeletal frame didn't require _too_ much space- that it really hit her.

It had only been a short fifteen minutes, but already she missed him.

She had tried to convince herself that she had made the right decision by not telling him- that she was a better person now and that was what mattered. Her newfound morality, however, had not gotten her Jake. And for this reason, she spent the entirety of the flight dwelling on her regret.

-------

It was lunch time at Tree Hill High, and Brooke was about to invite Nathan to eat with her when she remembered that the Clean Teens _always _met for lunch on Tuesdays. Since Chase had broken up with her, she had hardly been an active member of the group, but she was past that now. And besides, it would look great on a college application. _Yeah, so would a high school diploma..._

She glanced around, scanning the quad for the trademark "Virgins for Life" tee. For a moment, she felt out of place in her strappy tank top. Of course, only for a moment.. Finally, she spotted them and hurried over to join.

"Hey prudes." she said happily, settling down on an empty chair. "Sorry I'm late, but someone had to show the basketball team a good time.." she glanced around the table, and each one responded with a deadly serious expression. "I'm kidding!" she reassured them, somewhat alarmed that they didn't seem to know that already.

"Brooke.." Shelly, leader and founder of Clean Teens and girlfriend of Brooke's good friend, Mouth, looked around at the others hesitantly. "We need to talk."

Brooke, utterly confused, got up and followed Shelly to a more secluded area.

"I don't even know how to tell this to you, Brooke.." Shelly's pure and innocent presence reminded Brooke of a character in a porno.. the moment before they're devirginized- if that was even a word.

"Well... You open your mouth and you say words." Brooke replied. "I know I'm the one who's failing calculus, but it really isn't hard.. _like an erection_." she laughed as Shelly's eyes widened. As horrible as it may sound, she loved horrifying the clean teens. "I'm kidding." she said sincerely, hitting the other girl playfully on the arm. "Now what did you want to tell me?"

"We're kicking you out of Clean Teens." Shelly said hurriedly, automatically taking a step backward.

"What?!"

"We took a vote.."

"Why?!"

"At Nathan's party.. some felt it was inappropriate that you.." Shelly bit her bottom lip, obviously intimidated by the former captain of the cheerleading squad.

"The sex tape?" Brooke sighed, wondering if that one decision would forever haunt her. "That was a _long _time ago! And whatever happened to being a born-again virgin? ...or whatever the hell you call yourself?" Brooke was unsure why she was fighting this, but for whatever reason, she wanted to remain a clean teen.

"Okay..." Shelly said slowly. "Can you honestly tell me that you haven't had sex since being sworn in as a clean teen?"

Brooke considered this. Up until her tryst with Nathan last night, she could have truthfully said yes. Shelly noticed the hesitance and interpreted it as a no. "I'm going to need the shirt back."

"What? No!" Brooke feigned devastation. "How am I ever going to get a guy without 'Virgin For Life' plastered on the back of my shirt?" Though Brooke truly was saddened by this, she couldn't reveal it to anyone.

Now that Brooke had mocked her and the group, Shelly was feeling considerably less guilty. "Oh, it wont matter what shirt you wear, Brooke." she replied. "It wont be on for long anyway."

The two exchanged intense looks and were seemingly in the middle of a stare down when Mouth approached. "Hey guys." he said awkwardly, noticing the tension.

"Mouth!" Brooke greeted her friend with a hug, grateful for the interruption. "Have lunch with me?"

Mouth nodded in agreement until Shelly cleared her throat, and he was unofficially forced to choose sides. "Don't you have a Clean Teen meeting?" he asked her.

"It wont take long." she replied. "Five minutes tops."

He nodded and turned to Brooke apologetically. "Can I take a rain check?"

"Sure, whatever." she replied and dejectedly turned and walked away. She was unaware that Nathan was standing almost directly behind her.

"What was that all about?" he asked.

Although Brooke had just been kicked out of Clean Teens and ditched by one of her best friends, she somehow managed to smile. "Lucky for you, I'm no longer a clean teen." she said seductively. "Meet you at my place after school?"

He nodded vigorously in response and, satisfied, she turned and walked away, positive that Nathan was watching her as she went.

-------

After a much-needed afternoon nap, Lucas woke up to find that Haley was not by his side as he had anticipated. He sat up to stretch and, after briefly scanning the hotel room, saw her sitting cross-legged on the armchair. A notebook rested on her lap as she scribbled away at a frenzied pace.

"What are you doing?"

Finally, she looked up at him. Her thick, auburn-colored hair was pulled into a ponytail and her bangs hung just above her eyes. She hastily pushed them out of the way. "I got an email from Principal Turner.. He asked me to be valedictorian."

Lucas smiled widely as he got up to congratulate her. As nerdy as it may sound, this had been her dream _forever._

"I was just writing my speech."

"So you're coming home with me?"

"Well... no." she smiled at him apologetically. "I'm only going home for graduation, actually.."

"What about your classes? And.. and finals?"

"I emailed my teachers the rest of my assignments and they all allowed me to write an essay in place of the final.. I'm done."

"Overachiever." he teased.

She laughed. "Well, I guess your work here is done. Seriously, Luke. Go home and enjoy your last couple weeks of high school."

Finally, he relented. "I'll leave first thing tomorrow morning."

"Tomorrow?"

"Well, I wouldn't miss the show tonight."

She smiled as she got up to hug him. "Aww.. Thanks, Luke."

"Anything for you."

-------

Brooke hurried home after school. After all, she wanted to freshen up before Nathan arrived. She was feeling better now about her lunchtime letdown. After some careful consideration, she came to the conclusion that she definitely was _not _a clean teen and never really was in the first place. She walked into her room and distractedly threw her backpack on her bed before heading toward her adjoining bathroom.

"Ow."

She slowly turned around to see a head full of blonde curls and a bony ass. "Peyton?"

Peyton sat up and set Brooke's backpack carefully on the floor. "Hey ho."

"What are you doing here? I thought you were with-"

"Jake has a girlfriend." Peyton replied, the pain in her voice evident.

"Oh, Peyton.." Brooke rushed to her former friend's side.

"I wanted to tell him so badly.." her voice cracked. Somehow, Brooke was able to put aside their differences to comfort the blonde in her moment of desperation. "And now I wish I would have.."

"Why didn't you?"

Peyton shrugged hopelessly. "You should tell Nathan how you feel."

Brooke shook her head forcefully. "We're not talking about me, Peyton. We're talking about you."

"Did you tell him about the baby?" she inquired. Brooke's eyes were fixated on the floor. "He'll get over the abortion, Brooke.. I just think he has a right to know.."

"What?"

The two looked up to see Nathan standing at the doorway.

"Nate-" Brooke tried to stop him, but regretfully discovered that this was not an easy task. After all, basketball players were known for their speed, and this one was gone just as quickly as he had appeared.

-------

_Review, please!!:)_


	12. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: I don't own anything.

Author's Note: It's been awhile, I know. I'm so sorry! Thanks to all who haven't given up on me yet! Also, I'm lovin' the reviews-- they keep me goin'.

--

Brooke was at her locker reapplying her makeup when Peyton approached.

"Hey, B. Davis..." Peyton started. It was a risky greeting considering the secret she had unintentionally unveiled the night before. After all, it was a nickname given to Brooke by her best friend, and Peyton didn't know whether or not she would be allowed to fill that position anymore.

"Hey, P. Sawyer." Brooke surprised the blonde with a small smile.

"I'm so sorry.. if I had known he was standing in the doorway, I never would have-"

"I know." Brooke replied. "And it's okay."

Peyton's blue eyes searched Brooke's, searching for a sign of deceit. "Really? You mean you're not disowning me as your best friend or.. favorite enemy, or uh.. whatever the hell I am these days?"

"Well... I was kind of hoping you'd be my best friend again." Peyton's eyes lit up at this. "No offense, but being your enemy is kind of exhausting. You are one relentless bitch, Peyton."

In the interest of protecting her 'I'm an emo badass' charade, Peyton was generally not one to show much affection. However, it seemed as though Brooke had finally forgiven her, and Peyton could not restrain herself. She threw her arms around the shorter girl, stroking her hair lovingly.

"I'm sorry it took me so long to forgive you.." Brooke said as the two finally pulled away.

"I'm sorry I was so much to forgive." Peyton replied, happy that their friendship had seemingly been renewed to its original state. "So.. have you talked to Nathan yet?"

Brooke attempted to side-step the question with a small shrug, but failed miserably.

"That bad?"

Brooke glanced sideways to where Nathan was standing at his locker. He quickly exchanged books before slamming the door and hurrying in the opposite direction. "He wont even look at me."

--

It was Lucas' first day back since his short-lived accompaniment on Haley's tour. He spotted his brother in the hallway and hurried over to him. Nathan was sure to be stoked that Haley was coming home for graduation. All annulment plans would soon be laid to rest. "Hey, Nate." he greeted.

"Lucas." Nathan barely acknowledged his brother's presence before returning to his fast pace.

"I have good news." Lucas said, falling into step with him.

"You've finally decided to stop trailing my wife around the country and get a life of your own?"

"No need to get angry, Nate. I did it for you. You'll be happy to know that Haley's doing well. She misses you, though. I know she does-"

"Look, if I had wanted the details of your damn vacation, I would have asked for them." Nathan ran his hands through his hair in agitation as Lucas cautiously took a step back.

"What's the matter with you?" Lucas frowned. "Am I missing something here?"

Nathan shook his head. "No." he snapped. "Just do me a favor and leave me the hell alone."

As Nathan stormed off, Peyton seemingly took his place. "Hey stranger."

Lucas briefly took his eyes off Nathan's retreating figure to acknowledge his former flame with a small smile.

"What was that all about?" Peyton asked, motioning to the direction in which Nathan had disappeared.

"I don't know what his problem is. I went to see Haley.. to convince her to come home for graduation." he explained. "I was just trying to help him out."

Peyton nodded her understanding. "Maybe that's not what he's so upset about." Lucas's eyes searched hers, seeking clarification, and so she went on, but not before leading him to a more secluded area. After all, Tree Hill High _was_ filled with gossipers and eavesdroppers who were all desperately in need of a life. "He knows about the abortion." her voice was barely above a whisper, but his reaction confirmed that he had heard her loud and clear.

"No wonder he was so on edge." Lucas said after it had all sunk in. "How's Brooke?"

Peyton shook her head sadly. "How would you be?"

Lucas considered this for a moment. "How would I be if Nathan found out that I had an abortion without telling him..?" he laughed a bit in spite of the situation. "You know, I honestly don't think I can relate."

Peyton resisted the urge to laugh. Her best friend was falling apart. This shit was _way _too serious to even consider _smiling_ about... ever. "You may want to check on her." she suggested. "She's in pretty bad shape."

Lucas nodded. "Yeah, you're right. I should go see her."

Truth be told, Peyton was pretty damn proud of herself. A couple of weeks ago- hell, a couple of _days _ago- she never would've encouraged Lucas to do _anything _with Brooke that didn't involve moving on. But now? The love triangle from hell seemed awfully insignificant when compared to the problems the group faced now. Was she over Lucas? Maybe not completely. But she sure thought about Jake a lot more often...

"You're a good friend, Peyton." Lucas said, shaking her from her trance. "Brooke's lucky to have you.. You know what? So am I."

Peyton smiled her thanks and watched as he left. It seemed as though they could strictly be friends again without the romantic entanglements. _Again? _Well... maybe for the first time ever. But hell, Peyton was down for anything, she figured, just so long as it didn't involve anymore drama. Well... not much of it, anyway.

--

Haley dropped her pencil and pushed the pages upon pages of rough drafts aside. She was working on her speech for graduation... at least, she was trying to. It wasn't long before she discovered that it was impossible for her to think of anything that could even potentially be inspiring when she herself felt no hope whatsoever. How could she encourage her classmates- the people she had grown up with- to reach for their dreams when all of hers had been taken from her in the worst way possible? She picked up her latest effort and began reading aloud.

_"Most of you will walk out of this room, diploma in hand, without a single worry. You've graduated, and now it's time to make the transition to whatever party school you've decided to attend. To be perfectly honest with you, though, many of the people that you encounter in this world- potential employers, spouses, friends..." _she drifted off. _"They're not going to care about the person you were in high school. It's your personal traits and the strength within you that's going to determine whether or not you'll make it." _she paused and took a deep, shaky breath before continuing. _"What do you do when your entire world falls apart? It'll happen. At least to some extent. Experience has taught me to never be _too _happy. The universe has some twisted way of always evening things out. Always keep both feet on the ground and _never_ invest everything you have into a single cause. Because if that falls through, what more do you have left?"_

She stopped reading. This had to be the worst speech ever.. _reason enough for 400 graduates to kill themselves? _She suddenly regretted ever agreeing to be valedictorian. She was in no place to give words of inspiration. She should really just tell Turner she couldn't do it while he still had enough time to find someone else...

"Well aren't you just brighter than sunshine."

Haley whirled around to see none other than Chris Kellar standing in the doorway. "God." she breathed, placing a hand on her chest in hopes of steadying her breathing. "You scared the hell out of me."

"I'm sorry." she couldn't tell if he was mocking or sincere as she studied his appearance. He was dressed like a true rocker from head to toe, and she was currently modeling ... pajama pants and an oversized t-shirt. Arrogant asshole or not, Chris Kellar had a place in this world. He was a born musician who absorbed the rock star persona- every last detail of it. Haley, on the other hand, didn't really feel like she belonged.

"What the hell am I doing here, Chris? On this tour, I mean." her tone wasn't harsh, just genuinely curious, which perhaps prompted him to answer differently than 'for all the hot sex we're going to have' or something equally pervy.

"If you're here for the same reason as I am?" he settled down on the queen sized bed and got a far away look in his eyes. "It's because you love music."

Haley frowned. Needless to say, his simple answer was a bit of a letdown. But then he continued..

"It's that constant struggle, you know. Because if one day _your_ song is enough to change the way someone thinks about something.. then it would all be worth it. Music is my way of changing the world, and if you're here for the same reason I am? It's your way of changing the world, too."

To say that Haley was surprised would be an understatement, for Chris Kellar had been the one to reassure her that this was where she needed to be. _Chris Kellar_ had restored her faith where there had previously been none.

"And then, of course, there's all the hot sex."

...And then he went off and ruined everything by being himself. And Haley laughed like she hadn't in a long, long time. "Thank you." she said. "I know you don't really know how to be a friend... but I really needed that."

He seemed to understand.

--

It was sometime later that day. Brooke had attended three classes and could honestly say she hadn't retained a thing. How could she when her mind was constantly fixated on Nathan? Peyton had promised her that she'd feel better once the truth was out, but all Brooke felt was pain. People preached about the truth, but as far as Brooke was concerned, it was _way_ overrated.

Suddenly, she spotted him. He was headed in her direction, his eyes glued to the floor. _It was now or never.._ "Nathan." she said, just loudly enough for him to hear. To her surprise, he looked up at her. His eyes burned holes into hers for a split-second.. and then he turned and walked away.

It was all Brooke could do not to break down right there in the middle of the quad. She bit her bottom lip. _Hard. _She found it was much easier to focus on the physical pain than the overwhelming sadness that threatened to break her.

Peyton was standing only a few feet away and had seen the entire exchange.. or lack thereof. She couldn't just stand by and watch as her best friend fell apart.. not anymore, anyway. She cautiously approached her. "This is my fault." she said, placing a comforting hand on Brooke's shoulder. "I'm going to fix this."

Brooke didn't have the energy to try and stop her, but she couldn't watch. She nodded weakly and turned away as Peyton confronted him.

"What the hell is your problem?" she heard Peyton demand. Upon hearing this, Brooke was quick to walk away. At this point, she just had no desire to know.

"What are you talking about?" Nathan replied. He looked beyond Peyton's furious eyes and unruly curls- yes, she was a bit scary at the moment- to see Brooke slink away. He sighed.

"What am I talking about?" Peyton repeated incredulously. "I'm talking about Brooke! Give her a chance, dude. You're acting like a total asshole. Why can't you just talk to her?"

"Mind your own damn business, Peyton." he snapped, but she folded her arms stubbornly until he finally relented. "She was pregnant with _my _child and had an abortion without even telling me about it. I have nothing to say to her."

"I'm not saying what she did was dismissible, but you've got to remember the circumstances." she paused for effect, but he obviously wasn't following. "You and I were together then... remember?"

Finally, it all seemed to register as Nathan's face turned pale. Peyton went on, nonetheless.

"Thinking back to the person I was, I honestly don't know if I would've been able to forgive her." Peyton sighed. Her tone of voice was much softer now. "But now I know that she had her reasons. She did what she thought was right at the time."

Unfortunately, Nathan was much more stubborn than Peyton had ever anticipated. "That doesn't make it right now." he argued.

"Maybe not." she replied. "But you still should talk to her about it. Do the right thing, Nathan."

And with that, she walked away, hoping to God that she had gotten through to him.

--

Brooke was sitting alone on one of the benches facing the school parking lot. It was a good location, she figured. This way she could concentrate on counting the cars rather than the look of pure hatred she had seen in Nathan's eyes. Though it was nearly eighty degrees outside, she shivered at the thought. And then she continued counting..

"Mind if I sit down?"

The voice belonged to Lucas, Brooke duly noted. She shrugged. "Suit yourself."

Although he didn't feel overly welcome, Lucas sat and watched as her eyes darted from one car to the next. He cleared his throat, but didn't say a word.

"The bell's about to ring." Brooke informed him. "I don't want you to be late on my account. If I feel guilty about one more thing, my conscience will literally explode."

Although it was indirect, Lucas took this as an invitation to bring up what he knew was on her mind. "So... Nathan knows?"

"Yup." Brooke confirmed. Lucas was half expecting her to snap at him. After all, talking to Brooke Davis was sometimes like walking on egg shells. However, on this particular day, she was too exhausted to argue with anyone.. even Lucas Scott, who had always been the exception to every last one of her rules.. At least he used to be.

"How are you doing?"

His voice was soft and kind and, most importantly, just what she needed at that particular moment. She leaned her head against his shoulder. "Things have never been this bad before, Luke." she whispered.

He didn't need to say anything more. She knew he understood, and the two sat like that for awhile. Long after the bell rang, the duo were still sitting on the same exact bench. After what seemed like forever, she looked up at him. "How's our rock star doing?"

His eyes lit up at the mention of Haley. "She's good, I think.. considering the circumstances. She's coming home for graduation."

Brooke smiled. "Good." she replied. "I miss that girl." She wasn't lying. She did miss Haley. And judging by the way Nathan had treated her today, he would never forgive her. So bring on the Naley reunion.

Sometimes it paid, she realized, to constantly be screwed over. She was now much more ready to handle anything that came her way.

"Brooke." _Well... almost anything._

She recognized that voice. Her eyes darted to the left of her and there he stood. For some reason, she didn't believe that he was real. She looked to Lucas for confirmation, and he seemed to be equally confused. She watched as Lucas stood up and mumbled something about being late for class. She wasn't quite sure exactly what he said. She wasn't quite sure of anything anymore.

"We need to talk." Nathan said once Lucas had left.

Brooke managed to nod, and not long after they were in Nathan's car. Brooke wasn't sure where they were going, but she didn't quite have the nerve to ask. She concentrated on staring out the window while she waited for Nathan to say something. _Anything._ The silence was killing her. Eventually, they wound up at the river court. Nathan was quick to get out of the car, and Brooke reluctantly followed.

She half expected him to start shooting hoops and ignore her completely, but he didn't. He found a nice, patchy strip of grass and sat down. She cautiously joined him.

"A few years back when I was goin' with Peyton.." he paused. "I would always come here and just sit."

Of all the things that Nathan could have said, this was the least expected. Brooke sort of nodded along, though her confusion was apparent.

"When I was with her, I was always on edge. I needed a place where I could just get away from it for awhile."

His voice wasn't particularly angry, Brooke noted. She wasn't sure what any of this had to do with her, but she was just waiting for him to tear into her. _Why the hell wasn't he??_

"Me and Peyton brought out the worst in each other." he sighed. "You know, I've always blamed Lucas for our break-up, but it really wasn't his fault. We were a horrible, _horrible _couple that never should've

been together to begin with. Would you agree with me?"

She opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out. She cleared her throat and tried again. "Y-yeah, I agree with you."

"I talked to Peyton today. She said that you didn't tell me about the abortion because I was seeing her at the time, but I can't see that, Brooke. You knew that we were wrong for each other, so why would you want to protect our relationship like that?"

Upon realizing that his question was not rhetorical, Brooke panicked. Because honestly? No explanation would ever be good enough. What she did was unforgivable, and she knew it.

"Peyton wouldn't have forgiven me.." she finally said. Her voice was so soft it was barely audible.

"That's bull and you know it, Brooke. You kept it a secret for two years, and she still forgave you. I know that you must've had some other reason for doing what you did, and I need to know."

Nathan's voice was surprisingly calm. All he wanted were answers, and Brooke couldn't blame him one bit. But at this point? She honestly would have preferred the yelling. The fact that Nathan was so composed about it was freaking her out. Brooke realized how pathetic she must've seemed right then. Maybe, just maybe, Brooke Davis had one last fight left in her.

"Okay." she said, her voice considerably more confident. "Lets say I did tell you two years ago. You're a hot shot basketball player in your prime. Your dad's on your ass 24/7. Can you honestly say you wouldn't have agreed with- hell, _enforced_ my decision?"

"How the hell do you know what I would have done, Brooke?" Needless to say, his voice wasn't calm anymore. _Careful what you wish for..._ "You didn't even give me a choice." she was about to reply, but he was quick to cut her off. "And how could you keep it from me for this long? I could _maybe _understand back when it was just a one night stand, but we've been close friends for awhile now. How could you not tell me?"

There was a long, heated silence. "You're right." Brooke finally said. "I don't know."

Nathan did something strange then. He took out his phone.

"What are you doing?" Brooke wanted to know.

"Texting Peyton. She can give you a ride home."

"You're leaving?"

"This was a mistake. Everything between us... it was just one big mistake."

With those lasting words, he got up to leave. She didn't dare look back at him. And as she listened to the sound of his retreating footsteps, it all seemed to click. Nathan was walking away from her, and she didn't think he would ever be coming back.

--

Review, please!!


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